1-Week Post-Ankle Surgery: When will I be able to lower my leg without massive swelling and pain??
Posted , 53 users are following.
I (34 yrs old) am now 9 days post-ORIF surgery on my left ankle (plate/screws for spiral fracture and repair of torn ligaments) for a Weber C fracture/dislocation (surgery was one week post-injury). I now have a splint-type cast and go back to the surgeon for my first follow up next week (2 weeks post-op) and will be in a removable cast for 4 weeks, and then in a boot. I am non-weight bearing until I am in the boot.
I have been off pain meds for several days now and have minimal pain when my leg is elevated. When I put my leg down to get up to use the bathroom and shower, etc, my leg and ankle immediately swell from what seems like blood/fluid going down there by gravity. Putting my leg down results in almost unbearable pain within seconds, and is only relieved by elevating the leg again.
My question for those who have gone through similar ankle procedures is: how long should I expect until I will be able to be upright without this massive pain from lowering my leg?
I am not able to use my knee scooter yet and am now in bed with leg elevated 99% of the time because of this. I know that once this stops (or at least the pain is reduced) I can be more mobile and upright, which will certainly lift my spirits. Any advice folks can give based on similar experiences would be most appreciated.
2 likes, 89 replies
joan9 andrew15830
Posted
Pix2010 andrew15830
Posted
chris020262 andrew15830
Posted
Regards Chris From the UK
Tituscanby1 andrew15830
Posted
Yours sounds worse. Getting over surgery will take several weeks to start with. Yes its a very slow process. Sift tissue injury swelling can take months.
There is light at the end of the tunnel. I can verify that with Drs care and up and coming Physio, you will improve.
Don't be a hero and go off meds. Use them as directed . I stopped codeine but kept on anti inflammatories and panadol.and vitamin C.
I got very down about my swollen sore foot . purpley red blotchl mess.
Stayed in bed for 2 weeks. Hated shower. I have a shower slide. More stable than a stool. Your knee scooter may come in handy soon. Short bursts with pain medication on board. Take it easy. I drove mine out of hospital. Slow speed at your stage. From memory every thing was a pain in but. I ate lying down. Couldn't sit or stand easily, but you have to make regular efforts to prevent blood clots. Try to lightly wiggle toes. Ask Dr about that.
Get a hobby. Ps4, books, movies?
Hard I know. But very very gently do a bit more each day under medical advice.
This forum gave me sanity.
Good luck!
©{°$°}©
patti123 Tituscanby1
Posted
Tituscanby1 patti123
Posted
®{°÷`}®
patti123 Tituscanby1
Posted
Tituscanby1 patti123
Posted
angeladvocate andrew15830
Posted
Not sure why your not in knee scooter yet, I was using from day 2. Your surgery worse then mine or doctor's order? When using my knee scooter, leg responded as when elevated.
Swelling = inflammation = pain. My swelling improved significantly at 2 weeks by keeping foot elevated and icing, anti-inflam meds like you. Doc gave me prescription anti-inflam as well as pain meds. Are you taking anti-inflammatory? Help tremendously!! After two weeks, only took pain meds when needed (like 1X daily when getting in shower vs the 8 daily preseribed), but I continued with anti-inflam. pretty much daily, elevation (mainly for discoloration), but need for icing reduced.
Although swelling became a non-issue for me soon after 2 week mark (maybe anti-inflams?) and almost literally no pain when foot elevated, ONCE FOOT DOWN still had bad achy pain within seconds due to those blood flow issues you mentioned. in addition I had much annoying pins & neeedles, burning and red, blue, even purple discoloration. So foot up 100% except when bathing, dressing, bathroom and some unavoidable situations.
I was so frustrated not to be able to sit at my desk or the dinner table. I used walker with a seat as a knee scooter, not as good as the real thing but I coped. So by week 3, couldn't stay in bed or the recliner anymore all day, was going crazy. Reading books & watching TV just not my thing. So started to literally lift my leg up on my desk to work on computer (working on computer helped keep me keep sane). At dinner time I rested leg on the seat of walker. Had to twist back and forth to take bites but liked being able to sit with family.
These sensations most probably will continue till you start weight bearing, then will slowly decline. Can scare the @*#$ out of you at times - after bathing with chair in shower it was almost black when I came out. But it's all normal.
I finally started to walk in book at week 10 from accident and significant improvement on the lowering of the leg issues, still happens but way less. However, WARNING, once weight bearing, your swelling and pain will increase significantely again, and a whole new phase of questions. So be sure to get pain med refills when they put you in boot!! I'm at week 12 and just walked unassisted today. Remember I'm behind due to my 2nd surgery so you may be up and about sooner. You have your youth on your side ;-) I'm 56, was not in good shape and had many other health issues working against me.
It takes hard work and much paitence is needed to get through all this. Never imagined the recovery process would be so tough. Keep your mind busy, get adult coloring book if have to :-), read book, get a tablet, keep in touch with friends and family frequently, have visitors if you can to sit with you for a while, don't be afraid to call doc or his nurse with ques, take one day at a time and don't hesitate to ask for help from friends and family.
This is a great site for support. If you have Facebook, another good support is the page that will show up when you search for "Broken / Ankle / Foot / Leg Recovery - On a Quest for Normal." Join, it's a closed group but another great resource while you recover, you will have many more questions. Just a caution on comparing you healing time to others with same surgery. Some take 8 weeks, some 16 weeks, some lot's longer. So many factors come in to play regarding when. We are each unique and will heal based on our individual situation. Best of luck to you!!
patti123 angeladvocate
Posted
angeladvocate patti123
Posted
michael10402 angeladvocate
Posted
Tituscanby1 andrew15830
Posted
Because if my bakers cyst I can't get up off ground. Annoys me. Feel helpless like a chicken in a tree.
Have been stuck on groubdcfor an hour once. A husband with a slow healing broken hand not always that helpful.
@(+&+)@
jannie26408 Tituscanby1
Posted
Guest andrew15830
Edited
Andrew, how are you doing now? I had ORIF for bimalleolar fraction yesterday. I was 11 days post injury at time of surgery and I'm a 35 y/o healthy female. My ankle was dislocated and fractured in three places. My pain had finally abated somewhat from the initial injury, so it's been hard to start back at square one with new symptoms like incision pain and the lovely swelling that everyone describes. I'm really interested to see when people felt comfortable driving or going to work.
andrew15830 Guest
Edited
I am now 9 weeks post ORIF and doing very well. I am in a walking boot / aircast and am largely able to walk without crutches. 4 more weeks in the boot. I was not prepared for how long of a process it was until I would be self-sufficient and able to drive and go to work.
The first few weeks afer surgery were the worst. The swelling issues I noted in my original post were pretty bad for the first 3 weeks after surgery. I was effectively inactive other than to get up to the bathroom, which was all I could handle. Being effectively on bed rest really got to me, and I know that I suffered some depression during those weeks. Those first 3 weeks were tough, and if you experience the same, know that you will get through it.
Right around 3 weeks post-op I started sitting in a chair with the foot down, and those issues seemed to start going away slowly. My surgeon said that this was all normal, and he agreed that starting to sit in the chair with the foot down and get the foot to start getting acclimated to the circulation pressure again couldn't hurt. So I started sitting up more with the foot down until it got fairly uncomfortable (this was the first step to being more comfortable standing up/on the knee scooter), and after a few days I got to the point where I could drive and work half days in an office. I do wonder if I would have started putting my foot down earlier to get it acclimated (at least until the point where it really started to hurt) would have allowed me to become more active earlier. At about week 4 I was able to drive, because having my foot down was bearable - the swelling finally started to not be so painful when my foot was down.
During weeks 4-6 (in a cast then and using a knee scooter to get around) it still swelled and was uncomfortable if it was down for an hour or two without putting the foot up, but it was improving. I found that icing several times a day to get the swelling down helped a lot. By week 6, I was able to work in the office close to normal days.
At week 6, I went in and had an X-ray and was placed into the walking boot/aircast, and was then permitted to put weight on the foot while it was in the cast, or in the shower. It took about a week on crutches slowly adding more weight as I walked until I was down to one crutch, and then at about week 8 I was largely able to go without the crutches. The first week or so in the boot was tough, as the swelling issues come back in full force because of adding the weight to the ankle joint. But once I was able to go on just one crutch and then without the crutches, I felt like I really got my life back. I was able to get my own glass of water (gasp!), cook, and just be self-sufficient again.
Once I was in the walking boot at week 6, I started physical therapy. The first two weeks were just exercises to start regaining range of motion (e.g., "drawing' the alphabet with your foot) and massage/soft-tissue work to get the swelling down, and now I am starting on a stationary bike. The big thing, I am told, is to try to get the range of motion back while you are in the walking boot, so that you are ready to walk when you can drop the boot.
When the cast came off at week 6, the dr. said that I could start to stand on the foot without the boot while showering, but that took about a week before I was comfortable standing on it in the shower without the boot. But now, I can put most of my weight on it in the shower without any issue, and can see that with the range of motion coming back I should be in a good position to walk when I can drop the boot at week 13.
My advice would be not to let the horror stories get you down in the first few weeks. It is a slow process, but it does improve day by day. I hope that my story helps give you a sense of how at least one other person of the same age and otherwise healthy got through it.
patti123 andrew15830
Posted
Guest andrew15830
Posted
Thank you, Andrew! I really appreciate the clear and detailed description of your healing process. I keep telling myself that this is temporary, but it helps so much to see that there are small improvements on the horizon. I go back one week post op and they say they'll put me in a cast at that time. Right now I'm in a splint. They told me I'd be in the cast for two weeks and then move to the boot. I have been using the knee scooter since the third day after my injury. One positive is that the swelling doesn't happen every single time I get on my scooter or lower my foot. Maybe all the scooter time before surgery helped. I am still laying down the vast majority of the time with only short trips to the bathroom or kitchen. I'm also still on pain meds as my incision sites are stinging a bit and there's an overall ache throughout my foot. I'm trying really hard to stay positive, but the mental side of this is as tough as the physical effects. It helps so much to see that I'm not alone, so thanks for responding!