Fractured my ankle 3 months ago but ankle keeps swelling and is painful.

Hi Frankie 

your post interested me as I'm 10 weeks and have that sharp pain of outside ankle like something inside is stabbing......has yours subsided? This started 3 weeks ago when physio manipulated it, last sessionThurs has left me in pain and resting to see if it settles down. I'm frustrated today and trying to move forward I'm still NWB and I can tell she's getting frustrated with me with locked up foot. What's your progress now?  Thanking you 👣

Hi rene speak to.your doctor about a compression sock. I unfortunately gained a DVT after surgery but found that as I have to wear a class 2 compression sock, it seems to.help with the swelling in the ankle itself until about 10.00 in the evening. I.hope this may help. I'm 10 weeks in from breaking the tibia and fibia on the ankle and it's all held together with plates and pins on.both sides but I'm led to .believe I'm.healing well. Hope things become easier for you but I've been.told I'll have swelling for a year and belive this is common with ankle fractures. You probably have done soft tissue damage and it can be as bad as the break hence the swelling everyone mentions. Heal well and wish you a speedy recovery

Hi Josh,

Thanks for this posting, any idea how one can get this comfrey, I live in Uk by the way. Thanks

Hi sorry just jumping in on this one , I ordered some comfrey cream after reading the same post, I live in the uk and got it it off amazon, it's brilliant !!!!! I t came yesterday I've been massaging it into my foot and I can actually see my veins and tiny little bones start appearing on the top , it was so swollen and puffy before . It's great .

x🇬🇧

Thanks so much Pippie, I will do just that.

just checked on amazon, is it the cream or the oil?

I got the cream I've just used it to massage my foot to life before I start my exercises

Cream

Hi Kelly . I'm four months post surgery. I'm in a moon/cam boot without crutches and at home no boot with crutches. I still get some pain too. I fractured my ankle tibia , fibiia , chipped off another bone in the ankle with complete dislocation . Plates and screw all over. I have got what looks like vericous veins on that right leg. It's also withered. I don't know why I have those veins. Not heard of vein damage before you mentioned it. im not back at work yet as I'm on my feet 8hrs a day and 9 shifts a fortnight. There is no way I could stand on my feet all that time the way I'm fixed at the moment. I'm having physio and trying to get things moving again. I wish you well with your recovery.

Ms Camboot,

I broke the upper fibula and the bottom part of the tibia (the inner knob of the ankle) back in June.  In September, I dumped my Orthopeadic Surgeon and went with another.  I had surgery in October, the new doc performed a bone graft and screwed the two pieces of the tibia bone together.  In November, I got out of the boot cast and started hobbling with a cane.  I got rid of the cane in early January and am now walking with a limp and struggling.  I seem to have lost some coordination/control of the ankle as well. Through the course of all this, I also developed vericose veins on the shin of the injured leg -- which had become VERY withered.  I now have swelling that extends from the toes to the knee whenever I stand, walk, or put my foot down for significant periods of time. I also get discoloration/bruising below the site of the break/incision.  The swelling dissipates over night, but by 9:00A, is back in full force.   As my ankle and foot have gotten stronger, though, the vericose veins seem to have gone away, and the swelling has lessened but is still unacceptable.  I am now seeing a PT to improve strength and flexibility in the ankle and foot.  The PT is hoping improvements in these areas will further improve the swelling.  We'll see.   I'm posting just to let you know that you are not alone in your ordeal.  From the postings here, I believe we all could have our own convention!  Good luck to you!

Hi P.

You have been through a lot too. Did you first have surgery in June then a second op? Well I was just sat thinking of my ordeal and then received your message. Thank you ! The last two days I've been in pain, especially when hobbling on my feet. As you know I'm now 5 months post op and I know it was seriously damaged but not only is my ankle hurting but my foot also. Both feel numb in places and I have plates and screws up the fibula, plates and screws up the tibia ( that's up the centre of the tibia) and 2 screw on the little bit at the inner ankle and I can swear I feel them digging in at times. I am still having PT and been told to get rid of the camboot. I have been told to go out for a walk regular but not overdo it. I have been doing this but I'm very, very slow and can't move my foot and ankle properly. After the walks or hobbles I'm in such pain. I'm not at work yet as I'm on my feet all day and my job is physically demanding. I've ordered a walking stick so I can lean on that when I start to hurt. You seem to have had a very long journey too. I'm also doing exercises to strengthen my ankle but this too causes pain. I was previously very fit and active and it gets me down some days . Keep me posted on your recovery as you seem to have had a long, bad run too and I am interested to hear how and when you meet full recovery. Thank you for replying to my post. All the very best to you and thank you.

Hi Ms. CB,

I did not have surgery after the break in June.  The bone was set instead.  Xrays indicated that the gap had been closed suuficiently to foster healing.  We are Americans living in a third world country.  So, we were extremely cautious about the risks associated with bone surgery here.  Six weeks after the break, the original doctor looked at the xrays and said I could begin walking on it  I objected, expressing that the ankle did not feel ready for any weight bearing.  He put me into PT.  I really struggled through that. The pain just slowed my progress immensely.  It was also during that time that the vericose veins appeared.  At nine weeks, I saw the doctor again for "final" xrays.  He declared me to be completely healed.  I said, "Wait a minute.  This thing really hurts.  There's no way I'm completely healed!"  He looked at the xrays again and declared, "Well, you've got a failed union.  Keep doing what you're doing and see me in mid December".  That was the last straw.  I changed doctors.  My new doctor had worked in a Houston TX hospital for five years.  He's a very good surgeon; I've been very happy with him.  At this point, I'm doing pretty good, but not good enough for me.  Like you, I was very active.  My wife and I used to hike about six miles in the mountains every day.  I want to return to that level of activity.  So, I've decided to go back to PT to help me get there.  Both my doctors and the PT said that swelling could last anywhere from 6-18 months.  I really hope not.  Also, they've told me that operations on joints tend to have a higher frequency of lengthy swelling.  I was surfing the net last night to see what I could find -- in either support or refute of their claim.  I came across this blog.  From what I've read so far, I'd saythey're telling the truth.

Your breaks sound very extensive.  Were you in a car accident?  I certainly hope you see some significant prgress soon.  From my own experience, I can say that if the bones are healed, progressive exercise seems to reap significant rewards in terms of reducing the pain in the joints.

Take good care,

Jim

Hi Jim. What a carry on for you. No I wasn't in a car accident. I was out walking the English countryside ( I'm English but reside in Australia) I went up Mam Tor and the views of Hope Valley were magnificent ! On descending the weather changed. Thunder, lightening hence a muddy, wet descend. I lost my balance and fell full force on my right ankle. My foot went one way and my ankle went the other. I was rescued by EDALE mountain rescue team, put on a stretcher and carried to the top where I was airlifted by helicopter to the hospital trauma unit.my ankle was shattered and it was in a right mess. I've been walking again today and my ankle is very swollen and it was hurting while walking on it. This slow getting around is frustrating. My ankle and leg is a different colour to the other one but not a great difference. The strange thing is no one seems to understand the lengthy time it's taking and they have absolutely no idea of the pain either and they stand and stare as if are you joking after all this time. If they haven't seen my X-ray I get my phone out to show them. So many ignorant people Jim. I try to keep positive but I sometimes wonder if it's ever going to get right. I've come a long way and I've been through absolute hell the last few months. People complain about this and that and I think gee I just want to get my ankle right. Keep me posted Jim on your recovery. I guess we just have to be patient on this long road.

Dear MsCamboot,

Please I will like to know how you are faring now as I am in similar situation right now, 3 ankle fracture to right ankle, cast off after 6weeks, doctor said no union, gave boot and said I should weight bear. Am a bit worried as I haven't been referred for physo. Is it advisible to weight bear? I am interested in your progress please, are you back to work now?

Hi Abigail.

At 6 weeks I was given the air camboot. I wore it and used crutches putting a little bit of weight on my foot, only that which I could bare without too much pain. Or I sometimes used the Zimmer frame. I didn't actually go outside because I was in pain, slow and just not up to it. This went on for weeks and weeks. Slowly putting that little bit more pressure on my foot but still mainly using the Zimmer frame to protect me from falling. I used to take the boot off when sitting to massage my foot and ankle with cream and try to get it moving as it was servely stiff and it was elevated at the time of sitting. As time went on and the weeks which turned into months I found that I could weight bear using the boot with just one crutch and then one day I found I could wear the boot and fully weight bare unaided. Right your doctor has given you the boot, you must try to move in the boot with as much pressure as you can on your foot using either a Zimmer frame or crutches. Only put as much pressure down on your foot as you can bare. It's important you start to do this as your bones need to get strong again and you need to move it for the circulation too. Don't do too much though only what you are capable of doing. I did use the Zimmer frame to start with as my confidence was low and I was frightened of falling, believe me I found it to be a big step. Remember I was at the worse end of ankle breaks on the the spectrum so you may be quicker than me or you may be able to apply more pressure. We are all different just do what you can. You should be sent to physio for ankle exercise but they are very simple. Move foot up and down, side to side, get a towel or exerts ice band and put around foot and gently pull foot up towards ceiling etc. massage your foot and ankle. I'm saying both as my ankle affected my foot too. I didn't have a lot of physio at first but have it every 3 weeks now but do the exercises every day at home. No I'm not back at work yet as I have a very demanding job on my feet all day. I'm now five and a half MONTHS post surgery. I have just only got rid of the camboot and I'm in shoes walking very, very slowly sometimes with a walking stick. I get a bit anxious in crowds as I'm frightened of being Bowled over but my confidence will grow. I still can't walk without a limp but I'm getting there. I have come a long way and you will too. Just take one day at a time and even if you think you're not progressing just remember you are. It all takes time and there are many factors to take into consideration like the degree of the injury, age, fitness, healing. Just take it easy and be good to your ankle and treat it well. I'm also not driving yet. I found having visitors nice as I was house bound a lot and this site is good with the many lovely people going through a similar thing. I live alone and get my groceries brought to my kitchen by shopping online. You will be fine and if you need to ask me anything else I'm here for you.

Thank you so so much for your quick and detailed response, it has really cleared a lot of worries for me, I wasn't told if and when to take off my boot, but because of its discomfort I only wear it when I need to move around, I take it off while sitting down or sleeping, sometimes I keep wondering if am doing the right thing and if it will affect my healing as the doctor said there was no sign of union at my last visit. Did you sleep with yours?

Hi Abigail !

No I didn't sleep in the boot but had to be very careful I didn't knock my ankle in my sleep. As long as your ankle is safe it is fine after 6 weeks. That's my thoughts anyway. I also only wore it when moving around as I found the boot uncomfortable. Just massage your ankle and start trying to move it while sitting to loosen up the stiffness. I'm not a doctor but I really think if your doctor has given you instructions to use boot then do that. I would say after six weeks your bones will be fine to wear the the boot and move in it as explained. Not sure about the no Union but I doubt if it's not healing correctly your doctor would give you the boot. I know I sometimes think the worse but again if your doctor has given you the boot then that's progress. I'm glad I can be of help as I know too well what it's like to worry and be uncertain. Keep me posted Abigail.

Abigail just sent you another message. I would ask your doctor what he exactly means. He obviously did another X-ray ? Did you see the X-ray? Just ask for more details from your doctor Abigail.

Thanks a lot for your concern. I had an Xray, though he didn't show me the result of the xray, all he said was there is no union in your bone, there wasnt really any more explanation from him, and I wasn't given any further instruction but was given appointment for one month time, I requested for a copy of his letter to my GP, I got that letter 2 weeks later, it says, Abigail was operated by my coleague on ........ i examined her today and there isnt seem to be union in her bone and i am wondering if there is going to be any? so I am wondering why he would ask me to start bearing weight in that situation, with that I was scared of bearing weight but after fews days, I started gradually, there wasn't any unbearable pain, and to be sincere I haven't had any pain each time I put the foot down or bear weight in the boot, though with crutches and I am not on pain relief, so I am just confused, my appointment is due in about 10days time

Hi Abigail.

It sounds as if your bones are not healing and I don't know why he would ask you to weight bare like this. You also mention you don't have pain so I'm a bit confused. I would wait and see him in 10 days and ask for some solid answers. You could even write down what you need to ask him so you don't forget anything. I went for a little walk today and my foot and ankle were not moving as they should and I'm in pain. I would think if you had none Union of bones you would be in some kind of pain and he certainly wouldn't ask you to weight bare in a boot. Just take it easy until you see him and if you don't get any answers please get and ask for a second opinion. Keep me posted

Yeah, its because of the absence of pain and plus the fact that my ankle only swells from time to time but the swelling doesn't last long that am a bit confused, okay dear, I will keep you posted, you all have been of very great help. Thanks, for the note, I sure will because its important.

Hi Jim,

I assume you're in Manila. Do you mind sharing me the name of your new doctor and how I can get in touch with him? Just like you I'm very active and into sports. I had a nasty bike crash last month while I was training and broke the right side ankle of my right leg. I had surgery with metal implants. I'm now on my third week on cast post-surgery. I'm scheduled for a check-up tomorrow, but I just don't feel confident about my doctor. Besides lacking compassion, I noticed he did not even took the time to explain to me what I should and should not do, how to recover faster, and what to avoid. I'm just concerned that he did not made a good job at mending my fracture so I'm thinking of consulting other experts. Looking forward to your reply.

Regards,

Paul