ORIF - Tibia & fibula / ankle break pain

Just give it time and do the right thing for your legs.

Hi, it sounds like we have almost the same injury 😃 I broke my tibia and fibula, as well as my ankle (and the surgeon said a couple of tendons were broken too) in mid-October last year. I had ORIF surgery. I was also non-weight bearing for 6 weeks, 3 in a cast and 3 in an Aircast walking boot, and from week 6 I gradually put weight on the leg, and was walking without the Aircast boot or crutches, but with a limp, in mid-December (or rather, in the third week of December). When I first put the foot down it hurt very, very bad. The pain was severe when I took my first steps in the Aircast, and it was quite bad throughout the whole "weaning off" process. I now walk without a limp, can jump and even run a bit. The bones are healing well, according to the X-ray at the last check-up, but they're still not fully healed, particularly the tibia.

I still have pain, especially when I exercise a lot, and the point on the tibia where I feel the pain is not where the break seems to be on the X-ray. The places where the screws are holding the rod in place below the knee also hurt quite badly when I walk for too long. The knee also hurts sometimes. But the doctor said to exercise as much as possible as this is what helps the bone to heal, so I press on, hoping that the pain will subside. I use the Deep Heat cream, and I also take paracetamol when the pain gets a bit too much. It's a slow healing process unfortunately! It sounds like you are healing really well, apart from that pain, which I think at this stage is quite normal. Good luck and speedy recovery!