Zero pain after 5th metatarsal fracture reduction - is this normal?

Hi Olive I would say that its a good thing, can you feel your toes OK, they haven't gone completely numb?? Also your feet are possibly bluefish because to get circulation through feet and legs you have to walk so muscles in the soles of your feet push blood round.

If your really worried you could call your GP or speak to surgeons secretary, well done for being out of pain so soon, I think LOL

Greetings Olive,  I also broke the 5th metatarsal on my right foot back in late February.  It was very painful and I couldn't walk at all with the pain.  I went to the ER because there was no improvement over 3-4 hours of ice and elevation.  I was put into a boot and after around 3 days had no more pain with walking even without the boot.  When I followed up with an orthopedist after a week I was surprised, because I thought I was doing very well, that I had to go into a non weight bearing cast.  I still didn't have any pain.  I strictly followed the ortho's directions about being NWB because he said that's what is needed for the bone to heal.  After 4 weeks in the NWB cast I went into a high boot both during the day and night for 4 weeks.  That change was painful but not at the fracture site it was in my ankle from the hard plastic boot front cinched too tightly around my ankle.  I slept in the boot but without the front plastic shell and had no pain.  PT followed and I really worked at itl.  No pain around the fracture with PT.  Over the weeks I did have swelling and ever changing bruising.  I did develop a slight limp in the boot because of the thickness of the sole compaired to my good foot.  I have been pain free, in the area of the fracture, after the first few days and am totally back to normal now with all activities as before the Jones fracture including step aerobics and zumba.  BTW I turned 70 yesterday.  I think I was very lucky and I also worked very hard toward recovery.  It sounds like you are also lucky and doing very well.  I don't think your toes are blue because of a lack of circulation.  You had surgery and that is an insult on your body.  Surgery is not gentle.  There is cutting and pulling and tugging and bleeding etc.  That blood is trapped and it will settle in the lowest part of your body like your toes until your body reabsorbs it.  I thought the bruising was strange too, because if I banged my shin then that spot would turn black and blue but with this fracture I never knew what part of my foot would turn blue next.  It was like one blue toe "infected" the next one and then the next.  I also wondered, since the fracture was on the outside metatarsal of my foot, why I ended up with a very narrow bruise on the opposite side of my foot all the way from my heel forward to the base of my big toe. Just like someone took a blue marking pen and drew that line.  Weird.  I can say that full recovery takes longer than one would like and it is hard work so HOORAY if it is pain free.  I didn't take the pain meds I was given either.  I did take Advil some of the time.  Best of luck with your progress and if you do have questions, as Alexandria advises, call your doctor.

Hi Olive; yes I can understand your concerns; for although No pain, the fact that you have already got "bad circulation issues", then this could be something that needs to be looked at.  Try "pinching" the end of your toe, (hoping there is some jutting out of the end of the plaster), and see if the colour changes at all?  Perhaps even try lightly pricking the end of your toe with a pin that has been sterilized through a naked flame/boiled  water, and see if you feel this pain?   and check that "both" feet have the same level of pain/reaction to the stimuli? 

?If you are still not happy with the answers, then I would suggest ringing your surgeon's rooms and asking for a "follow-up" appt now, instead of the usual time. (and make sure you are listened to).    Let us know what happens.                     Bron