5th Metatarsal Fracture day 4

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Oh please can someone clarify a few things. As i left A & E without being given any advice or how i was going to manage.

Crutches oh my lord i am using muscles io never knew existed !!!

Bathing what a nightmare !!!!

I am in a cast it weighs a ton and rubbing my ankle to bits !!!

Why are some people given a plastic cast ? 

Do i have to stay off this foot for 6weeks ?

Help i am beside myself as i have to return to work tomorrow and i am exhausted just to go the loo and back as the cruthches are a nightmare.

 

0 likes, 25 replies

25 Replies

  • Posted

    Hi! I also have a fifth metatarsal fracture. I will be four weeks out from injury tomorrow. How your fracture is managed (cast, boot, surgery...) depends on the type of fracture you have. I have a zone 1 or avulsion fracture and did not require surgery. Crutches are awful, I hear you on that one. I got some padded weight lifting gloves because my hands were so painful and bruised from them. That helped a little. I know what you mean about not being able to do anything! I'm so sorry you are dealing with this. I was able to get off my crutches about a week ago but still have a boot and getting around is slow. Try to stay off it and elevate as much as you can. The swelling gets worse the first couple days before it starts to improve at all. At least that's what I experienced. Are you allowed to weight bear at all? Average bone healing time is 6-8 weeks and from what I've heard there's really no speeding that up. 😜 Hang in there. The first week was the worst for me.
    • Posted

      Hi, thanks for reply, no i was told not to weight bare at all .My a[ppointment at the fracture clinic is next week and then i will be nearly two weeks in. I have put fluffy socks on the crutches , but my balance is bad. Does it improve?
    • Posted

      I definitely got better at balancing on my crutches the longer I used them. It's just such a pain. And you can't carry anything because your hands are full of crutches!! Lol. Bummer you have to wait so long to be seen.
    • Posted

      Hi yes , apparently so sad That's why i am wondering if i will get something else ? As i said this cast is so heavy and rubbing my ankle. I know cannot make a drink and go and sit down with it sad I hate to ask for help and feel so useless !
    • Posted

      Oh I so feel your pain! I'm so sorry. Do you have an office chair with wheels? That can be helping because it frees up your hands. Then you can scoot around and at least get a drink!
    • Posted

      Yes i do but it is huge and i am in a middle desk 🙀 but hey ho, see how i go today . Dreading it to be honest 😩
  • Posted

    Hello Susan!

    I am so sorry to hear that you are suffering from this 5th metatarsal fracture as well! I fractured my left foot, 5th metatarsal 7 weeks ago. There are different types of fractures to this bone, and therefore they may be treated differently, depending on the type of fracture that you have.

    My fracture was a non-displaced, but decent sized fracture at the base of the 5th metatarsal. I fractured it on a Wednesday afternoon and went to urgent care that evening where I had x-rays and the confirmed it was fractured. They sent me home with a boot and told me no weight bearing, but they didn't give me any crutches!! I ended up getting crutches from my mother-in-law that evening.

    I didn't have a follow up appointment with an orthopedist until the following Friday. Nine days later. This seemed like a very long wait after the fracture, but they told me that this is standard as it allows the swelling to decrease before doing follow up x-rays and determining a treatment plan. They did another x-ray at that time. They confirmed that the fracture was still non-displaced. I was advised to remain non-weight bearing in my removeable boot until my follow up appointment a week later.

    The following week (2 weeks post fracture), the third x-ray showed that it hadn't moved so I was told to remain non-weight bearing for an additional two weeks. At this point the bruising was starting to fade. For me, the first two weeks were the worst. I felt like I had more pain from the foot than from the fracture. I had the boot on day and night, even to sleep, and it hurt my heel, toes, and everywhere on my foot. It was nice to be able to remove it a few times during the day to ice it. The crutches were terrible also. They hurt my arms and my chest. My knee hurt from supporting the weight of the boot. My other leg hurt from carrying the weight of my entire body. It was painful and exhausting!! The best medicine that I found was rest, ice and elevation. I kept my foot elevated above my heart almost all the time. I was lucky to be able to work from home during this, so I could sit in a recliner on my laptop with my foot elevated.

    At my next appointment (4 weeks post fracture), the x-Ray showed new bone growth! I was given the green light to gradually start weight bearing with my boot and crutches. The goal was to work my way to 100% weight bearing over a two week time period. Over the next two weeks as I transitioned to weight bearing my foot was very, very red and swollen.

    At my next appointment (6 weeks post fracture), I hadn't quite gotten to 100% weight bearing. I struggled with 75% weight bearing due to sharp pains in my heel and ankle after being non-weight bearing for several weeks. My x-Ray at this appointment showed continued bone growth and I was encouraged to get into my shoes as soon as possible.

    I've worked and worked at getting into shoes this week and finally yesterday, at 7 weeks post fracture, I finally got back into my other shoe. It is still slow going and somewhat sore. I still have some swelling when I am on my foot for a while. My next follow up appointment will be at week 9 post fracture. We'll see if I am mostly healed at that point!

    Please keep us posted as you progress through this. This can be a very frustrating injury! If you have questions, ask. I'm sending healing thoughts your way and hoping that you can get some rest!

    Anna

    • Posted

      Anna, thank you so much for sharing with me. It will be 13 days post fracture when i go to the clinic. I am praying i get a boot as the cast is awful especially as i only have a bath and no shower. I am however attempting a few hours in work tomorrow sad I will keep you posted biggrin
    • Posted

      Anna

      Thank you for your post. I'm struggling at 6 weeks non weight bearing along with continues swelling and hating every minute of the air boot.... Tell me it gets better soon ??

    • Posted

      Hello Carolina,

      It gets better - I promise! But, I will be honest, transitioning from non weight bearing to walking was more difficult than I thought it would be. I experienced lots of swelling in my foot, ankle and calf during that period. It was a challenge! I think, though, much of it is mental. I looked so forward to walking again and resuming my normal activities that when I found that it was a process rather than an immediate return to normalcy, I was depressed. So...just know that it's a process. And once you start walking, things really start to come together quickly.

      I was non weight bearing until mid-May and was walking in my normal shoes by the end of May, but it was a struggle and I really wasn't comfortable in my shoes until early July. However, I just returned from Alaska where we did some challenging 10 mile hikes in the mountains, which 6 weeks ago I was doubting would be possible.

      Hang in there! I promise that things will get better. And if you are 6 weeks in, things should be getting better soon. Just remember, that transition back to shoes might be a bit of a challenge, but you'll get through it in no time!!

      Anna

    • Posted

      Thank you so much for your input. I am so depressed already and my anxiety is high. The swelling is what makes me sad and I go to work everyday and I do sit all day but some days I feel my foot is the size of my head :-(

      I'm going to get good news when I see the doctor on August 10 for new X-rays... I need good news...

      My leg is getting so atrophied it makes me sad...

      I'm looking forward to just walking on the foot - the shoes at this point are furthest from my mind ??

      Thank you again ??

  • Posted

    Update Day 8 

    Well, it is like carrying a concrete slipper around.

    Here is me thinking I had a pretty good core and then a friend pointed out that as I have such a heavy cast this is pulling me over.

    Do not get me started on going to the loo in the middle of the night !!!!!!!!!!

    =

    • Posted

      Hang in there, Susan! I didn't have a cast, but I felt that the boot was heavy, and it definitely is NOT fun trying to keep it off the ground.

      Trying to make a bathroom run (or hop) in the middle of the night is terrible as well. For me, I would wake up between 3 am and 4 am. By the time I would get to the bathroom and back to bed I would be wide awake and it was impossible to fall back asleep!

      Just remember, every day you are one day closer to being free from your cast. Hopefully your foot starts to feel better little by little as it heals.

      I hope work is going okay!

      Anna

    • Posted

      I have done three days in work , not easy , but it helps the days go quicker . This week will be my first full week. Its the non weight baring and not being able to drive. I am avery independent person and hate to ask for anything . Cannot wait for Friday to go to the fracture clinic to see if i can have an alternative .
    • Posted

      Hi! I know how incredibly frustrating it is. I hope you get some encouraging news on Friday! I am 4 weeks out from injury and my xray yesterday showed really good healing so I can start transitioning to a hard soled shoe. I'm so happy! There are so many discouraging stories on the internet about this type of fracture I thought it might help to know sometimes healing can go smoothly and relatively quickly. smile. Hang in there! It will get easier.
    • Posted

      Oh thats so good to hear 😀wonderful news 😜 So are you fully weight baring ? When could you try that . I know i am inpatient but being alone its harder to not want go fo things 🤔
    • Posted

      Hi,

      I am fully weight bearing now. It's pretty comfortable if I have the boot on. I get twinges of sharp pain if I twist my foot at all when walking but overall it feels pretty good! I tried my shoe yesterday and it was very doable. Feels weird to walk because my ankle was fixed in the boot. Not too painful though. Just a little sore.

      I was completely non weight bearing the first two weeks. Lots of bruising and swelling and it felt like it would be forever before I could walk again! Then it started improving and I slowly started weight bearing in the boot. I ditched the crutches by about 2 1/2 weeks after injury and it has just steadily improved. Do you know what kind of fracture you have? I have an avulsion fracture and those tend to heal more quickly.

    • Posted

      No i don't sadly all i know it was a rolling injury where the ligaments pull the bone away . But you have filled me with such hope 😀 I will ask on Friday . What about driving ??? Any luck there ??? Do you have a support bandage sock ? As i believe its the ligaments that take the longest to heal
    • Posted

      Mine was also a rolling injury where the bone got pulled away so it sounds like you have the same type. smile it does seem it's the ligaments taking the longest to heal. The fracture hardly hurts at all now. It's the top of my foot near my toes that is the most painful still. I'm going today to the store to get a supportive wrap thingy for my foot. Not sure exactly. My doctor just told me to go and tell them I need a support for my foot. I will let you know what I get! He said I can start driving once I'm comfortable getting around without the boot and it doesn't hurt too much to push in the pedals. I'm hoping by the end of the week!
    • Posted

      Oh you do fill me with hope . Thank you so much for sharing , I maybe starting to see a glimmer of light 🙂
    • Posted

      Yes great news !!! I am mobile i have an air boot . After first day ditched the crutches . The strange thing is i feel more tired ? But feel so much better , as i can do more things . I am not to sleep in it and air my foot as much as possible . The pain seems worse but i can cope with that . So after 12 days i can walk 😜
    • Posted

      That's great news!! You must be so relieved to be out of the cast and off crutches. Glad to hear things are progressing nicely. How long did they tell you it would be for a full recovery?
    • Posted

      Hi yes so relieved he said 4 weeks in the boot but go with what ever feels right for you ? No follow up appointment needed . I have to admit that is is a lot more delacate than i expected and i am worried about a hard dhoe

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