My kitten had femur surgery with a pin. Why is she suddenly in pain?

Thank you for submitting your question regarding Cleo. Yes, in rare cases pins can migrate after a surgery. Other times as the body heals and swelling subsides, the pins are more easily felt. If she starts to act painful, her lameness increases or she refuses to eat, then she will need to be seen today. If she is otherwise acting normal, then I would contact her surgeon on Monday. You can describe her condition and see if a recheck appointment or x-rays are warranted. In the meantime, follow your surgical discharge instructions. I hope this information helps!

Hello and thank you for your post! It does look like there is weakening and loss of bone around the pin. I would definitely have this pin removed and then place Pashi in a splint for several weeks until the bone recovers. The first thing I noticed with this is that the pin is quite large in diameter and may be taking up too much space which could have led to this happening. I would schedule a recheck with your vet to possibly have it removed. Please do not hesitate to contact me with any further questions or concerns.

No, being in more pain now is not normal after that surgery. It may be damaging her joint or hitting nerves that is causing her more pain. I would have her rechecked to see if that can be cut a little shorter and to make sure it has not migrated out a little and slipped. Having the pin removed is an option and it varies upon the dog and healing as to if it is taken out. If it is completely healed and not bothering the dog, then they typically leave them in. If she is healed and doing well, then suddenly seems bothered, then the pin can be safely removed with out compromising the break

Sounds like Garth is still experiencing quite a bit of pain. While there may not be any clear fractures, other injuries involving soft tissue structures such as ligaments, tendons, and muscles can be equally painful. There are also injuries to nerves that can result in pretty severe pain. Lastly, dislocations can also occur (particularly in the hip) that are extremely painful. However, that should have showed up clearly on the x-ray assuming they shot all the way up to hip joint. I would continue to give him his medication as prescribed and make sure he is rested and confined. However, if matters are not any better by the time the prescribed course of meds is complete, he will need to be brought back in to the veterinarian for reassessment.

It's a little difficult to see in your copy of the x-ray, but it looks like the left femur might be fractured. If the broken bone is above the knee then a cast won't help because it's not possible to stabilize the fracture. If they have recommended pain medication and rest I think that probably is the best option with a broken hip - kittens can heal quickly and it's possible that he will have decent function in the leg. If not, then a surgery called a femoral head osteotomy might be an option once he's big enough for surgery.

Hello, thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. From what I can tell from the x-rays the surgery looks successful. It appears they started with an intramedullary pin and then went to using a plate which is more stable. The antibiotic she is on can cause some inappetence so I suggest you try feeding her some other foods to entice her like canned tuna, boiled chicken, etc. and ALWAYS give the antibiotic after she has eaten at least a few bites of food. If her appetite does not improve then speak to the vet about maybe switching antibiotics. I am not exactly sure what else you want to know. If you have more questions please post again and be as specific as possible. I am not sure what you mean by "recovery tx". Hope this helps. Best wishes.

Ouch, poor Static! Yes, she may have some pain still. I broke my humerus almost 12 years ago, and I remember how painful it was, even after surgery. I had trouble getting comfortable trying to sleep. If she has pain from the broken humerus, it may hurt to put pressure on her paw because it's putting weight on the leg. It does not mean her paw is broken. You can have her vet x-ray the paw to be safe, and talk to the vet to see if any pain medications might be beneficial to her. I hope this helps!