Although the office staff is friendly and the doctor is professional, I do not recommend Dr. Fihman. She put on a cast that was too tight and it caused me additional pain and suffering (see below).
Dr. Fihman treated me for a metatarsal fracture. After two weeks of being in a cast, she decided to put me in a second cast. Unfortunately, it was too tight. I complained when she was wrapping the foot and leg (before the cast dried). She said the cast would loosen. The top and bottom did, but not the point of impact, which was the shin.
The pain persisted, so I came in 24 hours later and complained of the pain. Unfortunately, Dr. Fihaman did not remove the cast. Instead, she created a bivalve. At the time, I was concerned that this would not be good enough to relieve the pain. It was not. Over the course of the weekend, I endured additional pain from the cast.
After 5 days of pain, I opted to switch doctors. Thank goodness I did. I saw two new specialists, a podiatrist and an orthopedic surgeon at the USC Keck Medical Center.
The USC podiatrist immediately removed the cast and put me into a walking boot. He didn't understand why I was in a cast in the first place, and not a boot. He ascertained that the cast was both unnecessary (as my fracture was healing well), and problematic, because it was causing visible irritation to my shin. This irritated me because I, too, asked for a walking boot, not a cast. Dr. Fihman and one of her colleagues had talked me out of that.
The USC orthopedic surgeon looked at the walnut-size welt left by Dr. Fihman's cast and said it was soft tissue damage. Had I left the cast on for even one more day, he said major complications could have occurred.
It's been a month since her cast was removed. The good news is that my fracture is healing beautifully. The bad news is, I still have a bump on my shin, and I also have what looks like a ganglion cyst forming on the foot, near where the cast was cutting off circulation there, too. Next week, I'll be seeing another podiatrist that specializes in wound care to see if there are options for these two injuries.
I am frustrated because these injuries were avoidable. Not only was the second cast unnecessary, but it was too tight and should have been removed when I was complaining of pain.
I'm writing this in case anyone else is experiencing pain and isn't being listened to... always get another opinion! read more