1 month post op

Posted , 4 users are following.

As of today, I am one month post-op for a ORIF Medial Malleolus on my left ankle. I had a screw put into my ankle to join a nonunion. I have been partial weight bearing since the day of surgery, and I have been walking on my ankle with crutches since roughly 3 days after my surgery. Still get sharp and throbbing pain in my ankle, particularily the outside of my ankle and in the back of my ankle, around the achiles tendon, with pain in and around the surgical site as well. I have been told this will happen because the anatomy of my ankle has been changed with a screw now in there. What I am wondering is, has anyone had a similar surgery, and what was your recovery like? Am i moving too slow with my recovery with still using crutches, should I be taking bigger steps to try and recover faster? Just seeing if anyone has any pointers or similar stories! Thank you for your advice and have a good day!

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4 Replies

  • Posted

    Hi Matthew--

    I had a similar surgery on March 10, where my malleous shattered and they placed a metal plate with 12 screws to recompose it. I was told to do partial weight bearing a week after surger and that is what I did. I used a tutor (not the big booth but two rigid sides of plastic wrapped around my leg and ankle), one crutch, and walked New York's streets for a couple of weeks. Until... I developed a sharp pain on the top of the foot from the ankle joint to the third and fourth toe. Very soft to the touch, the area pulsates with blood (?) and it's like nothing I have ever felt in terms of intensity. My toes are numb on the outside but on the inside they throb continuously. After doing an ultrasound, I was told that it is an acute tendinitis with borsitis and that I would have to stay in bed for a week, resting. Meanwhile the area of the malleous also hurts, with sharp pains probably due to the screws and the plate.

    I sleep with the help of meds but it's fragmented and in short bouts. I really dislike what is happening and wish to heal faster than I am. I hope this helps!

    Lauretta

    • Posted

      Thank you for replying Lauretta, and am sorry to hear about your set back in recovery. Hopefully the one week of rest will help you out and you will be back on the speedy list of recovery!

      I have not felt any pain like yours, but I am noticing that when I am asleep, I am awoken by pain on the inside of my ankle, by my surgical sight, that almost feel like a muscle spasm or something cramping up.

      I appreciate you replying to this and hopefully everything gets better for you quickly!!

      Matthew

  • Posted

    Matt,

    You are NOT going too slowly. Ankle surgeries require very lengthy healing times. I had the same sugery. I was 7 weeks, non-weight bearing, followed by a month of weight-bearing with a boot cast and crutches. All in all, at 12 mos post op, I was still burdened by a limp. Like you, my problems were not local to the surgery; instead, they were on the outside of the ankle and front of the foot. The problem is in getting those tendons and muscles to strengthen and stay that way. At 12 mos, I started doing Sean T.'s Cize exercise videos (kinda like Zumba). They were very effective at getting them strengthened. I am now doing his Insanity videos which are very intense with lotsa jumping. So, I've made progress. Just be patient with yourself, push it as much as you can, but don't over do it.

    • Posted

      Good morning.

      Thank you for your comment Pinoyboy, it is appreciated.

      Don't really know anyone who has gone through a similar surgery as me, so i don't really have anyone to turn to or ask questions, which is why this site is so great!

      It is nice to know you kind of went through the same thing. Just earlier this week I tried to walk with a cane, the following day it felt like I could barely put weight on my foot, was in quite a bit of pain on the outside of my ankle and the back part of my ankle for the reminder of the day. Trying to tske it easy now and see if things get better, as I am pretty sure I pushed it to hard using the cane.

      I appreciate your words of wisdom and hope your progress keeps getting better and better for you.

      Have a happy Easter!

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