Weight for surgery

[MomtoM]

My daughter - 11 yrs old - will have surgery in Sept/Oct. She has lost weight recently - she is 5 ft 6 in and went from 98 lbs to 92 lbs in the last 3 or 4 months. I think this is a bit underweight - would this be an issue for her for surgery and would she need to gain some weight? I encourage her to eat anything she wants - within reason - but she eats little bits of food, all day. Dina
Maddy diagnosed July 2008 (age 8) at 38 degrees
Dec 2009 - increased to 42/45 (age 9.5)
July 2010 – increased to 54 degrees – surgery recommended in 1.5 to 2 yrs (age 10)
March 2011 – 61 degrees with 30% twist (almost 11) – surgery in 6 months

[Elisa]

She does seem a bit underweight for her height and going through surgery and recovery, she will no doubt lose some more weight. My son lost about ten pounds, mind you he had two surgeries and four weeks of halo traction in between so your daughter might not lose that much. Maybe you could get her to drink some protein shakes with calories to keep her weight up in the meantime.

[KimR]

Our Dr and nurse said my daughter needs to gain 10 lbs before surgery.
She's 5'1 and weighs 91 lbs. Age 12. She's thin as well.
We have surgery planned for August or sooner.
Shriners gave me a list of high calorie foods to offer
I am always offering her food now.
Muffins, yogurt fruit banana shakes with flax, peanut butter balls, cream cheese bagels,
Anything she'll eat.
I always say "yes" to ice cream. Its different than I usually am, she knows it too!!
Best wishes to you and your daughter.
Kim

[MomtoM]

Thanks for the replies -- this confirms that I should be a bit worried and try to get her to put on a few pounds.

We have tried some Ensure - a nutritional shake - she didn't like it very much but I think I'll look into some other brands to see if they taste better to her.

And, I also say yes to anything she wants - just last night she had a slice of leftover pizza at 9 pm!

thanks for the great advice...Dina

[Singer]

Put a scoop of ice cream in the Ensure -- it makes it taste much better.

[kasaz]

My daughter just had surgery on June 15th, was discharged on June 20th, but ended up back in the hospital a week later with uncontrollable vomiting. She was diagnosed with superior mesenteric artery syndrome. The SMA was caused by the stretching of her spine from the surgery and her rapid weight loss post-op. An artery was compressing her intestine, making it difficult for food to pass.
After having been through that with my daughter, I would strongly recommend gaining weight before the surgery. SMA, although rare, is more common in tall, thin, adolescent females who have had spinal fusion surgery.

[LokanasDad]

At 5'6", according to height/weight charts her ideal weight should be 117-143 lbs if that helps at all.