About to start WB, worried about breaking ORIF/Ankle
Posted , 8 users are following.
Hi all,
I'm due to start weight bearing this week and will be almost 9 weeks post ORIF for trimalleolar fracture and disloacation, 11 weeks since original injury.
I'm in the UK and they forgot to book future PT at the time of surgery so I went for my referral last week but they said it will be 4 weeks minimum before I can see a PT. I was hoping to see a private one due to the third party in an injury claim offering one but having just had my assessment for that the wait is 21 days.
So it looks like I will be going it alone on the PT so to speak. I am nervous! My last x ray was three weeks ago and Dr said it's all still aligned and metalwork in place but I am terrified of 'breaking' something when I put weight on it.
one thing the Dr said when I first got taken to hospital that I had technically broken and displaced everything structural that held my foot to my leg. So knowing all of what now holds my leg to my foot is brand new makes me nervous about putting 190lb of me through it!
Can anyone reassure me that it will be safe please!
Thanks
0 likes, 25 replies
tom48911
Posted
Thanks everyone.
I am a bit worried about the pain I'm experiencing when WB as it is such sharp and focussed pain. It's a very specific area about an inch below and in front of the outer malleolus.
It's painless when resting and largely painless even when pushing range of motion exercises but as soon as I get to about 50%+ weight when walking with two crutches in the CAM boot it's very painful.
I can't work out if it's soft tissue or the fracture/metalwork site but I am a bit worried it's the latter.
I did mention it to the PT who seemed unphased. But Googling seems to suggest sharp pain is bad and not normal?!
janey77436 tom48911
Posted
Hi Tom, i fell off my horse in May 2017 at speed and thought it was a great idea to land on my feet ! I spent 8 weeks in a wheelchair due to a trimalleor ankle fracture and dislocation in my left ankle and a dislocation in the right.
4 weeks after my initial orif surgery i transferred to my local hospital who felt the original surgery was not up to standard so they took everything out and started again ! My ankle was in cast a total of 12 weeks non wb. I then went into a boot where my surgeon told me to start wb. I was terrified, especially as i'd already had it redone due to it not being quite right.
In all honesty the first few days of wb are the worse, and you always think is this right ? Should it feel like this ? I think my experience taught me to give everything time and measure any changes or differences. Feeling sick and almost out of body experiences was normal ! It will get better !
tom48911
Posted
Thanks for the further replies!
A week or so into WB I'm pretty confidently walking in the CAM boot with one crutch.
Frustratingly the pain feels like it is muscular or soft-tissue related rather than directly where the fractures were as when increasing weight or walking motions the only pain feels very focussed in one spot in that soft area between the top of the foot and front of ankle. However it is still intense pain.
Does anyone know how safe it is to walk in sneakers when the boot is recommended? I will ask the PT but it is another two weeks until my next session. I feel like a lot of the pain from walking may (or indeed may not) be coming from having my ankle fixed in the position of the CAM boot and indeed trying to walk with it in that position.
tom48911
Posted
It's definitely different for everyone but what I can now say, almost three months post-op is that progress can happen quicker than you may first think.
When I first started WB I thought it would be months before I was walking unaided. Today, only a month or so after starting WB, I was cleared to walk without crutches!
It's not painless, and a long way from a normal walk, but given that just under four months ago my ankle was in pieces and I was unable to leave my hospital bed, I can tell you it does get better!
I've been told to expect at least a couple more months before I can attempt high-impact activities (riding motorcycles for me) and up to two years before all swelling has dissipated but I am walking and happy.