When she was 9, Zoë Myers’ broken wrist didn’t heal properly.
Four years later, she finally got it repaired.
Zoë Myers, 23, of Selinsgrove, broke both bones of her right wrist playing soccer when she was 9. She was taken to a local hospital, where they set her arm in a cast.
Unfortunately, when treating her broken wrist, hospital staff didn’t notice an injury to the area of tissue near the end of Ms. Myers’ arm bones. This area, known in children and teens as the growth plate, determines the length and shape of her bones.
She couldn’t fully bend her arm, write comfortably, or play guitar.
As Ms. Myers grew, one of the bones, the radius, stopped growing. But the other, the ulna, continued to grow — and eventually created a lump on her wrist that made it hard to rest her arm on her desk when writing. She also lost strength and mobility in her arm and had pain for years, all due to her wrist injury.
“After the injury, I had about 20% range of motion,” Ms. Myers says.
After years of difficulties, Ms. Myers’ physical therapist recommended she visit Geisinger’s sports medicine program. New X-rays revealed that, because of the growth plate injury, Ms. Myers should have had surgery rather than a simple cast to repair her broken arm.
Geisinger’s sports medicine team to the rescue
Four years after the injury, Geisinger orthopaedic surgeon Joel Klena, MD, repaired Ms. Myers’ arm. “We basically realigned her forearm,” Dr. Klena says. “I shortened the ulna because it had continued to grow while there was growth arrest in the other bone. There was a mismatch.”
For Ms. Myers, the surgery meant relief, as well as a return to doing what she loves. “I no longer experience daily pain in my wrist — I only feel it when it rains now. Geisinger gave me use of my arm back, the ability to write, the ability to play guitar. I absolutely love Geisinger. They helped me out tremendously.”
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