fractured foot and consequences for the ankle

Cast can be uncomfortable at start. Take pain meds as prescribed. Elevation very important. Watch for cast rubbing. Heal and top of foot common. It that happens, go back and get another and ask for more padding. I had 9 fibreglass casts. Sometimes changed weekly. They can get loose as swelling goes down. Need a new one then too as they don't immobilise. Foot slips around.

Good news is, it Will get easier!??

Then you'll be off learning to walk again in no time, but no sofa or coffee table to hold onto. I have the same bone problem from nwb for way too long. I'm not giving up.

All the best!

©[°$°]®

As long as you keep the cast elevated, the leg and cast don't really hurt as I recall. It was the PT that hurt, but well worth moving forward. Some anti-inflammatories solve that. That transition isn't too long.

i'd say that the second opinion is reassuring. should be very happy to learn that cartilage is fine.

probably the fact that you refractured the malleolis same place isn't a complication, otherwise the surgeon would have mentioned.

my ankle dislocated so if foot dislocation is worse i can assure that you avoided some nasty experience!

from what i understand the bones in your foot broke in small fragments, also manipulation was mentioned. so the break is still quite bad.

the reduction is very painful, but don't worry because painkillers are here to help.

if complete cast means is the long one it's more confortable than you imagine, but you are stuck in bad with leg on pillows.

finally have my cast on. thanks again for advices!

i was given some sedation, to relax the muscless and reduce pains. doctor had to manipulate the malleolis and also the foot (i noted he pressed hard on the foot sides under the ankle).

so i understand why this is the worst part.

i hope it isn't required at every cast change.

then the cast technician started to work on it. being my 1st cast i was surprised it required alot of tight molding. i also found interesting how they avoided movements during the proces. i wasn't very awake but it's a time consuming job.

at the end they gave me back the shoe they cut the other day! it's painful just looking at it.

cast crew told to prepare to have stay in the 2nd cast up to 6 weeks, or maybe to be put in the boot for 3-5 weeks.

i'm stuck in bed, this thing is heavy but not unconfortable, it's very snug so i rented a chair because the ankle swells up in 5 seconds if i lower the leg. hope i don't need cast changes soon because when the effect of painkillers reduced the leg was in agony.

i would guess most of your pain is from them needing to manipulate your ankle back into place vs. due to the cast. It should feel a little better every day. I had my cast changed every two weeks, and wonder how people don't have it changed that much, because you lose so much calf muscle in two weeks that the cast gets pretty loose. You don't want the leg and ankle sloshing around inside the cast, that is for sure. My recastings never hurt me after my surgery, but I did get pounding pain at first whenever I put my leg down. Elevating it solved most of the problems. I used to also put an ice bag throughout the day under my knee next to the top of the cast and that helped too with pain. I remember after about the first week (to 10 days?) I wasn't on any pain meds at all until I got into PT and then just anti-inflammatories for a while.

You got lucky! Dr stood in doorway and watched as plaster nurse wrenched and manipulated my snap displaced fibula into a different one. NOT the right one as I found out 4 months later. No pain relief. I actually laughed, while in absolute agony. Couldn't do anything else, as my early teen aged girl was with me and has a bit of a phobia of hospitals ( from tonsils out and toe op last year )

I am so resilient to pain now, I tend to block it out and put off going to Dr.

Good luck. You'll have ups and downs, will be more ups in no time.

Have you tried a knee scooter?

I used to lay on couch, and put broken leg in cast up back of couch.

@(*+*)@

so if the bones stay in correct position the manipulation isn't required at cast changes. and cast molding isn't painful from your experience.

this cast is very tight, so i was prescribed constant elevation and wheelchair. i asked more padding but was told it would reduce support. anyway i'll be careful if the foot starts to move.

i was skeptical when i red that pains disappear with cast. but today it's allready better, my leg is complitely immobilized so now i see the difference with the boot.

 

ouch, i can't think how painfull! did pains reduce after cast application?

with my previous fracture i had to wait but the treatment have always been good. it was painful when x-rayed bare led the broken ankle, but it's the standard procedure i think.

this time swelling and pains were worse, the foot was stuck slighly bended down and inward. so everyone was alarmed. probably in this hosp orthopaedics isn't the major dept. so they don't see too many breaks.

actually i was prescribed bed and wheelchair, for the first weeks i can't move the toes (i can't anyway because of the cast). but i don't think i could use the scooter

i learned that being in cast is very boring

I glad for you. Psychological as well. Knowing foot is safe.

I went nearly 3 days with absolutely nothing. Foot kept flopping off pillow on broken dislocated displaced area. I had to keep placing it back on pillow. Ligaments and tendons were so damaged they couldn't hold it together. Even got told by medic to put weight on it.

Definitely better with support. You'll notice if swelling goes down and cast gets loose.

And no, no more manipulation! No use at that stage I believe.

Onwards and upwards really. Ride the storm and you'll come thru none to worse from wear!

My main problems, apart from swelling , is soft bone, aches in cold and damp weather, and lack of strength.

I remember getting out of cast, what a mess. Piles of dead skin coming off en masse.

And a scary feeling that I was going to fall over and do it all again. Rehab takes a lot of mental and physical strength.

My physio has been great. I have good flexibility. Leg not so ugly and skinny compared to other. 5 months immobilised, took a lot of sweat and TEARS.

GLAD you got seen to finally, and just seek help if cast causes problems.??????

@(*+*)@

Cast molding fine. They are super careful. Manipulation awful. A sedative would have been handy there.

Drawing on cast therapeutic too!😃

Knee scooter maybe in a few weeks when swelling gone down. Marvelous for mobility. Dangerous if you are not ready. Sure beats Crutches!

I have a walker now.

Okay Ukulele very well. And play console games via TV to proficiency!

You can get a special shower bag that seals over cast for that horrible task. Also shower slide. Sit on outside shower and slide over. I still use slide 10 months later.

Bed lever for getting in and out of bed. Raised chair.

@{°×°}@

Be careful if you drink and drive on your knee scooter. I absolutely loved my scooter, but got faster and more careless on it at times, and tended to tweak it too far to the side when taking a corner fast, trying to hop down a single stair to get to a restaurant bathroom, when I was super sleepy (getting out of bed in the middle of the night), or had a glass of wine at dinner. I toppled it and fell on my cast twice while turning my scooter too fast. No damage, just scary. The cast or boot kept it safe thank goodness!

Osteoporosis can be caused by low testosterone. Also a bone density test can determine if there is bone loss.When I had the test , I didn't have any bone disorders .The bone density test is usually two tests, one is an xray and the other is a scan .Sometimes a foot or ankle can determine bone loss. But the bone density test involves the hip,that's how I was tested in the US.

I believe females can have low hormones too. Same tests should be performed

Thanks for that John. I'll keep it in mind. My bone is only weak around the break area where it is bad, and knee down its a bit more porous. Other leg is 100% fine in bone density.

Oh Patti! I haven't been to a restaurant in years! My loo is in a direct line from bed. Forwards in, backwards out.

I used to race in the hospital corridors. People jumped out of the way. My daughter had great fun in the carpark paths. Even my husband had a go.

Biggest problem I had was reaching over to grab something and overextending. Sometimes took me 40-50 minutes to climb back on board.

Turn it around after backing was a nuisance. I took all the paint off kitchen cupboard handles and bedroom draw handles.

Still I swear by it!

Mobility was the key. independence.I saw my Auntie with one months before, and I had one within a week. Backskab roughed up the pad little!

Still, best thing since sliced bread as my grandma would say!

Anyone here had shingles, and know anything of ongoing pain?

I had shigles in the past and there is nothing you can do to relieve the pain.Half my back had shingles and the lightest touch from my shirt hurt. After they went away, I asked my doctor if I should get the shingles shot and he told me to get it because shingles can hit me again. I didn't want to go through that again.

One person I knew had them on her entire back, so she stayed home until they went away. It took about two weeks but she also had diabetes. Not everyone can stay home for that amount of time.Another person had it on the back but it was also of part of his rear end. I told both of them to get the shot.

My husband had them 6 weeks ago. 4weeks later he got nerve pain along original site. They gave him tiny dose of old style anti depressants to settle nerves. He said it was weird pain. No pain killer or other meds touched the sides. Agony!

Our son has had chickenpox twice and shingles 3X, all by 27 years. Vaccination cost over $200 here.

Thanks for sharing.

I have heard a few people now say that got shingles during recuperation from the ankle injury. Maybe extra stress on the body? Or maybe just by chance and percentages? Got to check at what age you can get the shot and what the side effects are from it. Sounds like something that it would be nice to avoid!

I just researched it. Looks like people generally get the vaccination at age 60 and up, but we can probably get it age 50 and up. Looks like a good idea. I didn't see many issues as far as complications. I'm 56 and am going to try to get the vaccine. 

My mum had it twice. Once she had no rash. I came home from school, and an ambulance taking her to hospital.

Funny, she never got it after she left my dad. Plenty of stress, but dad was nasty and violent.

Hmmmm

That is very sad, but glad there was a happy ending. Stress can bring down our immune systems and open our systems to ailments. 

Haven't thought of that in 40 years. All good. Yeah, immune system just sent me an email. I opened it. Twas a virus! Damn. Now I've got a cold like the rest of household.

Hope I don't end up on antibiotics like them.

And yes, Matriarch down, all hell breaks loose. Place falls to bits even more.

Oh well carry on rewardless. Oops regardless.

I've woken up on a joking mood for past 2 days.??????????????????????

Funny