Elena, The Little Princess With

Elena, fascinated by the camera! 

On Wednesday, a gorgeous little girl named Elena came in for a consultation with surgeons. Though she had missed the clinic day, her condition was so severe that CAMTA decided to add her to the surgical list for the week. During her assessment, she agreed to be photographed and was an absolute star for the camera. As soon as we took off her socks to photograph her feet, her demeanor changed drastically. She was reluctant and shy to show us her feet. She kept repeating her feet were “ugly” and “not real feet”. Her deformity was such that she had developed an alternate way of walking: knee-walking. Despite the odd position of walking on her knees, she was more agile on her knees than on her feet.

On the morning of her surgery, she reacted the same way towards pictures, telling us that she had “monsters instead of feet”. Those were quite harsh words considering Elena is not even 3 years old. Knowing she perceived herself so monstrously despite her young age just confirmed how much the surgery would change her life: both for her ambulation and her confidence. 

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Elena's feet, photographed for our files while she was under anesthesia. 

t is quite rare for North American surgeons to see such a severe case of club feet. In Canada, children who are born withthis condition are usually treated in infancy, with a non-invasive procedure using Ponsetti casts. To document the procedure, instead of forcing her to have her feet photographed, her parents agreed that taking photos while she was under anesthesia would be less unsettling. 

Closing up – Suregons inserted pins into Elena's feet to straighten them out. The pins will stay in for some time and will be protected by the cast. When they sutured the incision, we could already notice how the feet were positioned at a more natural angle.