Pain continues during PT after ankle surgery
Posted , 4 users are following.
I broke my ankle on 11/13, had surgery on 11/18. Was non weight bearing until
My 1/11 surgery to remove a pin. NWB for another week. I'm now doing PT, out of the boot, but the pain has not subsided, in fact it's worse. I have to be on norco 10 which I hate. Is it normal to have this much pain during PT after being NWB for almost 3 months? My range of motion has improved but the pain and tightness is not improving. Just wondered if others have experienced long PT with continued pain. Maybe I'm too impatient.
0 likes, 3 replies
GreenOlive janness_43536
Posted
I had a trimalleolar ankle break on December 17th ,2016 and a surgery next day. I have seven screws, two pins , and a plate in my ankle. I was NWB for six week. I have been in physio therapy for the past three weeks (twice a week, six sessions so far). I find that I still require to use pain medications ( ibuprofen) and ice after each PT session. I found that walking in the pool helps a lot with tightness and strengthening muscles. I started walking with chest high water and progressed to waist high water. It does miracles for me. Give it a try if you have access to the pool.
Patientholland janness_43536
Posted
Hello. I am sorry you are going through this. I am 14 months post surgery for broken tibia and fibula and it is a complicated ever changing landscape of pain and disability. What I did learn was patience but also to get second opinions. Go with your instinct. I got to a point where my doctor was dismissive and I sought other help. That doctor found severe inflammation and gave me a guided steroid shot which really helped. It takes the minimum of a year for the injury to even start to settle and, of course, it doesn't help that in order to walk, you have to continue to put pressure on a very fragile area. I also found this site very helpful.
Good luck with your recovery
janness_43536 Patientholland
Posted
Thank you for your response. Patience is what I need but difficult at times! I have a great PT and I see him today. On Friday he said my tendons surrounding the ankle were inflamed. I've done everything he said to do over the weekend & no improvement. I'll ask about talking to the dr about steroids. Your post helped. I have to accept that this will be a long recovery.