1. Community
  2. Bones, joints and muscles
  3. Ankle Problems

Ankle ligament reconstruction surgery... 4 weeks on it feels the same..

Posted , 37 users are following.

laura87716
laura87716

Hi!

Has anyone had ankle ligamnet reconstruction surgery? I damaged my ligaments in Sept 14 and have been on crutches ever since. At the beginning of Dec I had my surgery and now 4 weeks on, the pain/restriction feels the same sad.

I would love to hear from anyone in the sme situation, or anyone who has any tips.

Thanks

0 likes, 79 replies

79 Replies

Prev Next
  • dazsav
    dazsav laura87716

    Posted

    Yep, that sounds like the same pain I'm experiencing rolleyes How did you go about getting an MRI scan done?? On second thoughts would I even be able to have one given that I have metal in my foot?? lol. How long after your injury did you have your op?
    • laura87716
      laura87716 dazsav

      Posted

      I was injured the end of September and had the op the beginning of December. I think the plates and screws they use are titanium and are not affected by the magnet during the mri but they can distort the image at times.

      I went to a private clinic that does MRI scans but it cost €200. Fortunately I've health insurance that covers scans and a&e visits.

      Id to pay €3000 for the op though 😩

  • dazsav
    dazsav laura87716

    Posted

    Typical. I will have to speak to physio/specialist. Which country are you in, Ireland? I'm in England.
    • laura87716
      laura87716 dazsav

      Posted

      Yes, in Ireland. The waiting list for the op on the public list was 18-24 months so I couldn't wait that long! I've a review appointment on Monday and hopefully start physio then. Will you receive physio sessions through the hospital?
  • dazsav
    dazsav laura87716

    Posted

    Wow, and I though our waiting list was long. To think people critisize the NHS and yet really we all take it for granted. Yes thankfully all my treatment pre-op/post-op and physio is paid for on the NHS and thankfully because I had to wait so long to see if it would heal on its own (6 months) it was only 5 days from seeing surgeon to having op.
    • laura87716
      laura87716 dazsav

      Posted

      That's a relief! At least it's all covered. The same surgeon works on the public and private list. He said he cannot do anyone else on the public list as he wont get paid. thankfully my physio will be free.

      Are your in a walking boot?

  • dazsav
    dazsav laura87716

    Posted

    Bet that's a relief otherwise cost would soon mount up. Ive been given an air splint to wear since had cast off. U?
    • laura87716
      laura87716 dazsav

      Posted

      I was given a walking boot told not to put any weight on my foot. I find it very bulky and uncomfortable. I found the fibreglass cast a lot more manageable.
  • dazsav
    dazsav laura87716

    Posted

    It's very hard going when you can't weight bare. I had back slab cast for 3 weeks NWB then full cast with shoe. Had cast off now so can fully weight bare can wear air splint when needed. Can't walk well though cause ofissue with knee/foot movement.
  • cris24111
    cris24111 laura87716

    Posted

    Hi i had my ankle repair in the summer of 2013. I'm 25 and since a kid I had like 2 sprains a year until 2013 it was getting ridiculous how easy my foot gave in... I had a surgery with epidural (I thought it would hurt like hell but turns out they first give you a local anesthesia and only after the epidural so it actually doesn't hurt more then a regular injection) , epidural has less side effects so that was great. I had 2 anchors placed to correct the ligaments. I had no cast or boot, I was simply put into a tight elastic gauze bandage. I spent one night in the hospital, with good pain meds smile

    1st week: rice (rest ice compress elevate), no weight on foot.

    2nd week: stiches out changed bandages and no weight on foot

    3rd week: light weight on foot (always with cruches)

    4th week: PT with minimal weight on foot, mostly laying on my back while my PT just moved my foot around and lots of pain!

    PT was a lot of hard work I went 4x a week and in the beginning a lot of pain. (no pain no gain)

    About a month and a half after surgery I was kinda walking during PT

    2 months I started driving again (i drive shift and it was my left ankle so i really couldn't drive lol)

    Around 2 months and a half I was just using 1 crutch to avoid accidents. And after that I had gained most of my range of motion on my foot so my PT was more concentrated in gaining muscle back in my leg (it's amazing how you lose so much muscle you lose in so little time).

    In 3 months I was feeling great but still had PT for an extra month just for the guided exercise.

    My Doctor told me I was one of hus fastest recovery and I believe it was mostly due to my excellent PT. I continued to exercise after and still do (it was the main reason I wanted to get thus fixed) it's very important to be fit before surgery (helps a lot if you have good muscles before) and after of course.

    All your muscles in your leg pitch in with your ankle stability.

    Only weird thing that I found was thatbI learned that our sciatica nerve goes all the way down to your toe, and for the first 3 months I had this tingling feeling through my foot that was quite irritating, but that went away smile

    I now run and rock climb with more confidence then before and of course I can rock in my high heelssmile

    • Thnkr917
      Thnkr917 cris24111

      Posted

      Wow, I hope mine goes that fast! I had almost the same exact situation and treatment as you, accept they did have to reconstruct one ligament that had completely torn and never healed causing much of the instability. I had frequent sprains that no amount of guarding and rehab would fix and I was sick of spraining my ankle on stupid things like pebbles and avoiding pretty high heel shoes, as you suggested.

       The Dr said 2 weeks in a splint, 2 weeks in a fiberglass cast and at least 2 weeks in a boot, but even the splint is giving me claustrophobia, so I really would like to skip straight to the boot so I can have the peace of knowing I can elevate my foot and release the straps for a few minutes now and then. I can handle strict non-weight bearing no problem.  Now that I'm used to the knee scooter, that part is cake.

      I have NO pain, never did, just claustrophobia. Also, the pain meds that I took despite having no pain, didn't sit well with me. They gave me crazy panic attacks, crying, etc. Glad that's over.  I get weird tingles now and then, that resolve if I change position. I got a big tingle when I absentmindedly flexed my toes up against the bottom of the shoe (really hope I didn't screw anything up there), and my muscles feel weak and shakey down there as expected. Please, please let this heal quickly and let me not do anything dumb, absentmindedly, that makes me be in a darn cast for more weeks or go through that surgery again!

    • tom8787
      tom8787 cris24111

      Posted

      hi cris,

      I am 3 months past my ankle ligament reconstruction, still getting pain in the front oof my foot when I dorsiflex.

      Did you have similar and was you pain free by 3 months?

      Cheers

  • olivia87471
    olivia87471 laura87716

    Posted

    i had  a orif done on my ankle 11-24-14.it didnt fuse so 4-27-15 had the reconstruction done.thia pain is worse non weight bearing again for 8wks i keep my ankle elevated most of the day. but its starting to hurt even more i only thing i do is play it by the hour.it's along road ahead for me but hopefully this time it work out better
  • Luchie
    Luchie laura87716

    Posted

    I had  ligament repair and one ligament replaced with a donor tendon because it was beyond repair.  This was done 2/3 and no pain in that area!
  • brendan06500
    brendan06500 laura87716

    Posted

    I know I'm a few months late, but I just tore 3 ligaments in my ankle. I'm scheduled to get surgery in a couple of days. I'm kind of nervous with this being my first surgery, any advice?
    • Lisa2016
      Lisa2016 brendan06500

      Posted

      How did you make out?  I just had a brostrom and syndesmosis joint repair.  3 weeks in, still lots of pain/swelling.  How did you ake out when you first strted to weight bear?  Did you use the crutches for long after you had the walking cast?

       

Back to top
Prev Next

Report or request deletion

Thanks for your help!

We want the community to be a useful resource for our users but it is important to remember that the community are not moderated or reviewed by doctors and so you should not rely on opinions or advice given by other users in respect of any healthcare matters. Always speak to your doctor before acting and in cases of emergency seek appropriate medical assistance immediately. Use of the community is subject to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy and steps will be taken to remove posts identified as being in breach of those terms.