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

Foot care
1

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 .

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

Thanks

2

Dear Laura,

My sympaties to you, I am also just three weeks passed my surgery, different from yours since I had total ankle replacement. My advise is to hang on in there! follow exactly the doctors orders, he/she probably recommended starting PT right away and that is a must. Don't let the pain scare you, it is part of the recovery process and tends to drag us down but we have to win over it at any cost. It will be slow recovery (this is not my first time surgery, I know) but make no mistakes, the more you work this over with persistence the better result you will have.

All the best,

G.

3

Hi Laura i had ankle ligament reconstruction ( brostrom gould procedure ) in July last year i was in a cast for 6 weeks(non weight bearing) then a boot for another 4 weeks first two weeks i used crutches then i was able to weight bear from my boot after 4 weeks i progressed to an ankle brace all the while having physio which started when i came out of the cast i was back at work and walking 4 months later still wearing an ankle brace to support my ankle. i finished having physio in December and i am now out of the ankle brace and using my ankle normaly i feel so much better now my ankle is healed i still get the odd twinge if the weather is cold but appart from that they did a brilliant job on my ankle hang on in there i really felt it would never come to an end but it does you are still very early on but you will get there just do everything the hospital tell you and hopefully tou will recover i really didnt see an end to all the pain and discomfort but here i am back to work nearly 6 months on and back to wearing normal shoes (well almost cant yet wear high heels but im sure in a few months time i will) )hope this has helped you let me no how you get on

4

Hi I had a brostrum in August (6 weeks NWB had to go into boot early as ankle wouldn't stop swelling, even had to sleep in it - nightmare) - 6 weeks pwb plus boot then weaned off everything by about 4 months) and even up to a couple of weeks ago thought it was never going to make a difference and suddenly, I can keep my shoes on all day, it is stronger, I can do more and it doesn't hurt so much, bit of a problem with a kinked toe, and turned down offer of op

physio supposed to be two weekly but that isn't really feasible on nhs locally, spent a bit with chiropractor after 4 months which helped a lot, and now swimming each day which is really helping,hang in there it gets better

 

5

Hi guys,

Thanks for the replies! I'm feeling more positive after hearing your encouraging words! Fingers crossed it'll start feeling stronger soon! There's only so much tea and tv I can take! 

 

6

Hi Laura,

 

don't mindme asking but what injury did you sustain and how has your movement been restricted please?

Thanks

7

Hi,

I was playing hurling (irish sport kind of like hockey but more contact) and got a hard whack on my putter ankle and rolled my ankle inwards. Swelled up like a balloon! I was told it was only a sprain and told to go home and rest it up using crutches.

Turns out the ligaments were snapped and my talus bone was completely torn out of place. The ligaments healed but were too badly scarred.

The restriction on movement is most evident when trying to push my knee forwad without lifting my foot from the floor.

I hope this helps! Any more questions just ask!

8

Thank you for your quick reply,

I ask about the restriction of movement as I fractured my lateral malleolus in May last year, waited months for it to heal but it didn't so I underwent ORIF surgery in November. Since my injury and even following surgery I cannot move my knee over my ankle, ie. squat (which sounds like what you explain) I have spent months at physio in between accident and operation trying to move my ankle/knee like I explained and fear I wont ever be able to do it. I also damaged my ankle with a rolling motion in a pothole, and wonder if there has also been damage to ligaments that have been overlooked..... 

Hope that makes sense

9

Were the damaged ligaments picked up by an x-ray??

10

Hi again. It makes perfect sense. Sounds like we've the same problem. My ankle was too swollen for the xray to be read properly so Id to get an MRI done privately as the waiting list was 4 months long!

I'm hoping with physio soon it will improve. I had 2 rounds of physio pre-op with no improvement.

11

I guess I'm just going to have to play the waiting game as I am only 7 weeks post op. It would be just typical if they had overlooked ligament damage...... my physio was a bit miffed as to why I wasn't able to move in that way, and even 7 weeks post op still feels exactly the same, but then again if there is ligament damage and I've only had bones repaired of course its gonna be like that. When I try and move my knee over my ankle it almost feels like there is a bolt running through my ankle and the back of my heal is really stretched. How does it feel for you?? Have you been told that your range of movement will return following physio? Did you sustain any fractures? I know my first x-ray wasn't very clear. I just wan't to be normal again :p

 

12

When I try move my ankle out over my knee it's a shooting pain where the 90 degree angle between my leg and top of my foot is. I'm almost 9 weeks post op now so hopefully it will improve soon.

The surgeon said it should regain fully motion. Id an avulsion fracture which means the ligaments tore off the end of the bone rather than just come away from it. The talus had a hair line fracture too. That's the bone that sits between the end of your leg and the the beginning of your foot.

13

Yep, that sounds like the same pain I'm experiencing 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?

14

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 😩

15

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

16

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?

17

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.

18

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?

19

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

20

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.