To date, the SDMB has never failed me in a request for information. I realize, however, that I’m pushing the envelope on this one.
Our newest addition was born on July 3rd, and is a happy and healthy little boy except he has a floating thumb. If you don’t know what that is, click here. A remedy for this condition is pollicization surgery. This surgery is usually done before the child’s first birthday (10 - 12 mos).
Mrs. Ivorybill and I are weighing our options - - hell, needles scare me, let alone knives (even those wielded by trained professionals) - - and as we’ll be making a decision that will affect this young man for his entire life, we’re in a massive information gathering mode. Have any of you had any experience with pollicization, either as a parent or patient? Knowing what you know now, would you do it again?
If the thumb itself isn’t fixable I’d definitely go for the surgery.
I was raised in farm country and know of several idiots…ahem. People. People, not idiots, who have done stupid things with PTO shafts and other various farm equipment and had their thumbs ripped off. Some go for the index switch, some don’t. Those who go for the switch function better with a digit that functions as a thumb. One guy I know plays guitar and has a heck of a time trying to hold a pick without a thumb/thumb substitute to grab the pick on the other side. He now wishes he would have had the surgery.
As a caveat, all of those with missing thumbs lost them when they were older. Your son will never know he had a thumb and may, because of this, get along just fine. But I’d still go for the surgery.
Thanks, chique, for your comments. We hear similar things from the doctors: get the pollicization now so our son will never know anything different or never get it done so he’ll never know anything different. Apparently once a person is used to not having a thumb, the surgery interrupts ingrained use habits and the whole thing turns into a big mess.
I had a friend in college who had a total of seven digits. I cannot recall if he had none, one, or two pollicizations. At any rate, he was one of the best guitar players on campus and a phenominal bicycle mechanic.
It’d be nice if we could ask our son what HE wanted. Personally, I’d prefer to have a thumb, but I think we owe it to the little guy to look at all angles pretty carefully before we proceed.