Sacrum X-ray suggested to ensure healing

Dear Dr. Gott: I am a woman 73 years young. I have always been physically active, particularly in the past 15 years, when I have done extensive gardening, worked out at a gym three times a week and walked many miles.

I am not overweight and have never smoked or drank, and I take extra calcium and Fosamax.

Nevertheless, a simple little fall seven months ago left me with a fractured sacrum and an injured pubic bone. I have been in pain and unable to walk enough to lead anything like a normal life since.

I’ve been sent from one specialist to another and finally told that there is nothing that can be done, and I was advised to keep moving even though it hurts, which I have done.

Currently I am doing physical therapy in water and swimming three times a week and getting around as well as I can with a cane the rest of the time. Every time I think I am getting better, with more mobility and less pain, the pain reasserts itself, and I’m right back where I started.

Do you have any advice for me?

Dear Reader: A fractured sacrum usually heals in about six weeks. However, the pain from broken bones can last for months.

I suggest that you have your sacrum X-rayed again to make sure that the bones have knit. If they are healed, you will need to be patient or seek a consultation with an orthopedic specialist.

To give you related information, I am sending you a copy of my Health Report “Managing Chronic Pain.” Other readers who would like a copy should send a long, self-addressed, stamped envelope and $2 to Newsletter, P.O. Box 167, Wickliffe, OH 44092. Be sure to mention the title.

Dear Dr. Gott: I have two granddaughters, ages 4 and 2. They have sore throats all the time, and they have wheezing at times. They have been this way most of their lives.

What I was concerned about is that their mother has about seven cats in their home and two dogs most of the time. I wanted to know if this would have anything to do with their sickness.

Dear Reader: The combination of wheezing and constant sore throats in two children suggests the possibility of asthma and allergies. The children might be reacting to animal dander.

Their pediatrician should be alerted to the children’s symptoms. Perhaps a meeting with an allergist would be a good idea.

At any rate, the pediatrician can advise the family and make the necessary referral.