Plates & screws

Thank you for your response! I have no pain it's because I haven't NOT taken my boot off since my post op follow-up, 02/02/17 I took the boot off for about 10mins and put in back on, I sleep in it I NEVER TAKE IT OFF I have NO pain since making this adjustment.. I can wiggle my toes way MORE then I could before I feel a sting here and there ( on my wounds) where the incisions were made 35 stitches but it's getting better

Hey Cass- So glad to hear you are doing well!!  Can you remind me the date of your surgery or break? Are you a tri-mal? Several of us noticed the last 3-5% improvement actually in month 11 if you can believe it. What people told us about it taking about a year to 18 months to get back to totally normal seems to really be panning out. I used to be stiff when walking for the first 20-100 steps in the last several months (month 6-12) , and that just recently went away, which I was beginning to think was arthritis from the injury and would never go away- but it did! Hang in there re. this. I think it may get better. Keep walking and moving a lot. I walk 5 miles a day just around my house and running errands. I got a fit bit as a gift and realized that once I monitored my walking pace. The " motion is the lotion " as my friend always tells me. Stay well!

I broke it the night of 02/08/16...and had surgery on 02/18/16. Right at a year ago, and I am tri-mal.Just a couple of nights ago when in bed under the covers my 12 pound dog was lying on top of the covers.. not right on top of my foot but close enouogh she was bothering me. I lifted up the covers and the dog by just pushing my foot straight up.. using the top of my foot.  Something snapped and of course a huge jolt of pain. I had a couple of shooting pains go through within the next coupe of hours. I'm thinking ... here we go, I must have snapped the bolt going straight through the ankle from the front to the back. But.. I can walk just fine. Now a couple of days later I can stretch it (pulling back towards leg and then pointing toe out hard). Nothing inside feels like a screw is broken or hurting anything inside. I'm thinking scar tissue broke up. I almost have more mobility..  Just have to take it a day at a time. I was going to call the Dr. but he is several miles drive away,, I'm am going to leave it alone unless It gives me more fits.  Anyone else experience anything like this??

It does sound like it might be scar tissue. Keep massaging and pressing and holding it. It's good to break that up. You can also press right on the bar hard and hold and you'll feel a little tingling pain sometimes which is the scar tissue breaking up. I think I broke all mine up about 4-5 months ago, but I'm sure some lingers. Ron and I had surgery on 2/17/16. It's crazy how so many of us were had injuries a few days apart! Daphne and Ron are doing really well now btw! Ron is skiing in about a week in the Alps where his skis malfunctioned last time. So happy for everyone! We made it!!!!

Thank you so much for your response

you should be. Read what Patti and I posted above here. We certainly remember being where you are and yes, it does get better. Day by day and week by week. 

I've never heard of moving your ankle after a tri-mal injury. I'm not a doctor but maybe you should get a second opinion on this! My experience is you need 7 weeks or so of total immobilization.

Thx. It's nice to hear as I lay here day after day. 

It's im feeling really good how I am progressing. I will check in with my doctor tomorrow. Your saying 7 weeks from tri-mal injury or surgery? Thx please let me know

It depends on your injury. I would guess 7-10 weeks for the bones to heal, and everything starts at the surgery date. Everyone I know was told not to move it because if the plate and screws move even a little in the bone then later you could be more prone to arthritis. After the bones heal, then they want you to get going and put pressure on it asap, to make the bones even stronger and to get the calf and other muscles back. I found this online " Following surgery the patient will be completely non-weight bearing for a period of 2-3 months.  The repaired ankle will be incapable of bearing any weight for a long period of time and doing so could shift the placement of the repaired bones. Any misalignment of the bones could predispose the patient to an early onset of osteoarthritis in the joints of the ankle/foot complex. " What you are doing is not weight bearing, but I just have not heard anyone saying they were moving their ankle during the initial period after tri-mal surgery. 

you are welcome... I feel for you... I just Hated being non mobile. I did a lot of reading and crocheting.  It will be better soon.

Thank you. I noticed my ankle swells right after I flex it so im back to just resting it. I hate this laying around. I have pain when I keep my cam boot on and find i take it off when not moving to the bathroom or kitchen.  

Mm the bottom of my tibia was screwed back on and it's rotated as its healed so it's not lined up..I hope that doesn't mean I'm more prone to athritis!

Has your doctor seen it? What does he say?

My doctor casted me after the tri-mal and changed the cast every two weeks (because the muscle atrophied every few weeks and so it got loose). He said a lot of doctors (most doctors actually) use the Cam boot, but he feels that people take it off too much, and then try to move with it off, and mess up their alignment, so he casts all his patients so they won't move it accidentally during the bone healing stage. The group I went to does a lot of the pro- athletes in the San Francisco Bay Area, and I knew he'd been around a long time, and everything turned out well from casting (for anyone out there that is casted instead of in a boot). I was moved to the boot after the bones healed though and I could start weight bearing- at the 8th week I think it was. My surgery was done in Hawaii where I fell off a hammock. I couldn't fly home without surgery being done there, due to potential of swelling with air travel due to the break.

The specialist didn't seem worried it had healed crooked but he did warn I'd probably get arthritis after the op although they probably cover themselves by telling everyone that..

Thanks for your response, surgery was 1/10/17.. post op 2/2/17 stitches removed only in one incision because I couldn't take the pain, i was place in a boot and told to bare down according to how much I CAN try to move the ankle from side to side so it doesn't get stiff have t done that either no have I taken the boot off since my post op.. 2/2/17 I loosen the straps and open the Velcro that keeps the boot closed I have no pain.. I have NOT TRIED to bare down Iam EXTREMELY PETRIFIED I will brake my ankle again😩😩 I go back 2/16/17 for an X-ray and the rest of the sutures to be removed