Testimonials
We are so grateful to have Dr. Dobbs as our doctor!
Marleigh is almost four and had the reconstructive surgery on both feet. I was sure the first surgery would take care of things but God had other plans. Dr. Dobbs and the entire staff at Shriners and Children's are such a blessing. No wonder he was voted the top doctor in August!!! I appreciate all you do and have done. Thank you for continuing to care and research!
When I first discovered that I was pregnant, I knew my world was going to drastically change. At 20 weeks, my husband and I went to find out the sex of our baby. He beamed when told it was a boy, then we were told that the doctor needed to explain the "other" results to us. The doctor explained to us that our son was showing bilateral clubfoot and was referring us to a genetic specialist in order to rule out any other medical defect. I never knew anyone who had this type of diagnosis and when he told us of the possible diseases adn deformities that could accompany the clubfoot, my dream of a "perfect" baby quickly faded. I cried as we left the office, thinking all of the worst possible outcomes. We did an amazing amount of online research, and one name kept coming up, Dr. Dobbs, and luckily, he was located within driving distance for us, along with being covered by my insurance. I spoke to a few doctors and children's agencies in the area, who confirmed that for my son, Dr. Dobbs was going to be the best. I contacted Dr. Dobbs via e-mail and he quickly returned a message to me, followed up by an e-mail by Ms Porter, further explaining their services and procedures. They did a lot to calm this already nervous first time mom's nerves. When Xavier was born (completely healthy at 6lb 7oz and 20.5 in), his pediatrician completed the necessary referral and we had an appointment within the week. 5 casts later and the tenotomy, Xavier started his braces today. The whole process went by so quickly and Dr. Dobbs and all of the staff were so patient and great at explaining the details of procedures they were doing, not to mention their ability to handle my baby with a tenderness as if he was their own. Virtually no problems were had with the process, excluding some minor pressure sores, skin pushing, and with the last cast his toes sliding up a bit, Xavier had tough nights following each casting, getting used to the different position and weight of each cast, but he did roll over and kick his toys on his floor gym while in them. He is already scooting of his blanket with his little brace on. I am singing the highest praises of this staff and the treatment method that they used because I watched a miracle occur with my son's development over the past several weeks. I would encourage any parent who reads this to take photos documenting the progress your child makes. It is amazing to look back at the difference each cast makes, especially considering each is only about a week apart. I would also like to note that if you are in Illinois and need financial assistance with your child's medical services for this treatment you should contact the Division of Specialized Care for Children at #1-888-841-3232. They helped us by paying my insurance copays, reimbursed us for our travel expenses and helped sort out things with my insurance company with claims. They have worked well with my insurance company so there has been virtually no expense for my family. I hope other families are as lucky as we have been. Feel free to e-mail me if you would like any more information about our experience.
My daughter Gretchen was born with clubfoot. Before she was a month old we took her to Dr. Dobbs. Luckily we only had to do 2 casts! And no surgery! She is wearing the brace now, although we have had trouble with her trying to wiggle out of it. She will be 4 months old on Sep. 22nd! Dr. Dobbs said she is very lucky not to have the surgery. She has already rolled over with her brace on!
My wife and I are proud parents of a 5 month old baby boy. Our son was born with bilateral club feet. Since he has been about 10 days old he has been under the care of Dr. Dobbs. He did very well with the casting - with some minor problems with him trying to slip out of the left foot - but that was taken care of. He started out with the braces 23 hours a day. At first he hated the braces (loved his leg casts) and we had problems with him keeping them on. He would kick the off a lot throughout the day. So, with the help of Kristina (who is wonderful by the way) in Dr. Dobbs office, she recommended we go to the shop. They gave us braces with shoes ontop of the ones we originally where give with the foot mold/straps so we could try both and see which ones worked.
We liked the shoe braces much better, however, over a period of two weeks our son once again started getting out of those. So, went back to the shop and he has been in his first set of braces ever since. These are the ones that are molded to his feet. His left foot does not completly sit in the mold, however, Dr. Dobbs told us that will happen over time!
We religiously kept our son in the braces for the 23 hours a day for three months like we where instructed, and, ALWAYS do the necessary feet excercises. We went back for a visit this month and are now slowly reducing down the amount of hours each day he wears the braces to where he is wearing them in the evening, when he sleeps at night and during naps. He has gotten use to them and now they rarely come off/loose.
I must tell you, I was born with a hip disease call Perthes. It was never caught until I was in my late 20's...I am now in my late 30's and I have had numerous hip replacements. My wife and I along with my family are greatful to Dr. Dobbs, Children's Hospital, Shriners Hospital, Kristina, and the rest of the staff for what they have done for our son/family and what they continue to do for us so his feet are corrected.
It also is nice to see grown adults that had club feet as children come up to us and mention that they had gone through the same thing as a child, and, they are perfect fine and where growing up!
5% of the correction process is Dr. Dobbs and his staff. The other 95% is the parents. It is well worth the time/effort for our son. We highly recommend Dr. Dobbs and his staff. We are very thankful and greatful!
WE ARE WALKING!!!!! Just wanted all of the other parents to see some wonderful news. My little 18 month old girl started to walk this past Wednesday. After our last visit on 7/31, I still felt frustrated because she wasn't walking yet but Dr. Dobbs and Kristina kept assuring me. Now she is up and on the move. She doesn't have the "normal" walk, instead she walks with her feet wide apart and keeps her legs stiff. I can't say in words what seeing her walk means. I remember talking to Kristina for the first time and tearing up and wondering if she would walk. I know it took a while but we are finally there!! Thanks so much for the patience, care, and understanding of Dobbs, Kristina, Kelly, and Barb.
Mason still has his dorseflexion and can go a little past neutral(although lately he's been trying to fight me again on doing his exercises, which he's done before--not so much that it hurts him at all, just think that he would rather be up and moving). But anyways, when he's walking, both of his heals do stay down. And Kristina and I spoke through email and assured me that things should be ok as long as he still has his dorsiflexing and walks with heals down. She and Dr. Dobbs--I really just can't say enough about how much they mean to us, and for all they've done to help Mason.
My daughter Mollie is now 13 months. We too, were treated improperly for two and half months before finding Dr. Dobbs. He and Kristina are wonderful caring people and I trust them completely. Mollie's feet are doing and looking great. It's a hard bumpy road in the beginning, but with time and experience it does get better. If anyone has questions, I will be happy to help however I can.
Hi! My son Sammy is 21 months old and is a patient of Dr. Matthew Dobbs. We're currently in the maintenance phase of the clubfoot correction process and couldn't be more pleased with Sam's progress. His feet look fantastic! If anyone is interested in finding out more about the Ponseti method of clubfoot correction or Dr. Dobbs please feel free to contact me at the email address referenced here.
