The big decision

After three years of surgery and medication Chris Biddles decided to have his leg amputated.

IT SEEMS EVERYBODY WANTS TO FORGET 2021 for many reasons. I am not sure how I would rate the year, but I do know one person who has had to endure a massive amount of difficulty in 2021. My long-suffering wife, Karren.

She has had to put up with me spending 40 nights in hospital over four occasions since January 2021.

Karren has also driven a very impatient passenger to some 20 specialist appointments, mostly at Whangarei base hospital 100km from home.

From July to the end of October these were weekly. Karren was left to carry a bigger load onfarm with me farming when I could in plaster or a moon boot and on crutches for nearly 10 months, while also self-administering intravenous antibiotics on four different occasions.

To recap, it was three years ago (February 1, 2019) that due to severe fatigue I made a dumb decision on my quad that resulted in a shoulder smashed in half and a completely dislocated and compound fracture of the ankle.

“I tell people if they would like to piss me off, they can do one of two things or if they really want to make it worthwhile do both: give me advice and offer me sympathy.”

In October 2020 I had the ankle successfully fused and just as I was about to start walking, in January 2021, I got a massive infection in the ankle which required surgery. In April 2021 I had further surgery to remove half the steel from my ankle. With the infection persisting, further surgery was needed to remove the remainder of the steel.

In June 2021 I had surgery number 10. My surgeon told me the infection had followed the screws deep into the bone and would never be beaten. It was hoped we would get on top of the major infection but could expect flare-ups now and again. Possibly years apart, possibly months apart.

Strong antibiotics would hopefully give a short/ long-term fix. The second suggestion was long-term low dose antibiotics for life and the third was amputation.

At 4.00am the next morning after a sleepless night noted by my night nurse, after talking with that nurse for an hour I decided I was not putting up with this shit for life. So next morning I told my surgeon this was the last go at getting it under control, but if the infection came back again I wanted amputation. She supported my decision. I then talked with all my health care providers that by this time had risen to well over a dozen and every one supported my decision.

We got the infection right down in July/August and in September, six days after finishing high powered antibiotics my CRP level had jumped to 108 from 1.

I agreed to one more go as it had been looking so good. This meant 19 antibiotic pills per day, but three weeks later an MRI showed the infection had moved into the fused part of the ankle. Several options were considered with the only one likely to succeed being amputation. A week later Margy gave me a tentative date in November and I was elated. I was going to get my life back.

One by one every one of the nurses in the fracture clinic that I had got to know so well came into the room with Karren and I to tell us what a great decision we had made. They knew the alternative was a life of crap and they see it all the time with patients.

So on November 10 the lower leg came off in surgery number 11. Two days later I received my last IV antibiotics and for the first time in 10 months I was antibiotic free. At writing this, it is eight weeks since the amputation, I am in a wheelchair around home much of the time. I have a temporary prosthesis which for now I wear for a few hours a day, I am able to do some work.

I tell people if they would like to piss me off, they can do one of two things or if they really want to make it worthwhile do both: give me advice and offer me sympathy.

So 2021 ended really well for me, life is good and I am enjoying this new challenge.