Yesturday morning i got all The hardware taken out of my ankle i am in a lot of pain nothing i cant bare..I kno for the first two days its goin to be pain.I HAVE A COUPLE OF QUESTIONS HOW SOON CAN I START WALKIN? What to expect? My doctor said i can start walkin right away but im not sure if thats a great idea
When i got my hardware out my surgeon told me wait 3weeks cuz of the major surgery I before. Also he said u can try too walk but be careful cuz u have like giant holes in ur foot from the screws.
I'd advise you to do what your doctor says. If it's safe to weight bare on, maybe slowly build it up. ☺️
Do you mind posting your progress as much as possible? I'm 8-1/2 months along in healing with a trimalleolar fracture, with all the hardware installed and am starting to feel the inner ankle screws stinging a bit throughout the day. I also feel the plate on the outer ankle throughout the day, although that isn't hurting- just slightly binding at times. I'm leaning toward getting the hardware out and would love to know what to expect. Is your long (plate) scar longer than before? Thx!
I sure will keep you updated
Im thinking that as well but im in alot of pain right so later this week i will
Oh wow my doctor said i had little screws and he said just take everythng slow
Hi Patti hang in there! For me it has been five months and six days. Getting another opinion. I'm desperate!
Oh yea absoulutley make sure u don't go too hard on it I guess we all just know our body's so whenever it feels right too bear some type of weight on it I would say too that's just what I was told and researched also you're not in physical therapy like 2wks or a w/o from now? That always helps.
I would give some time for healing after the hardware was removed.
Hi Shantell,
Bet you are relieved to be on the final leg of this long journey.
Keep your foot ankle elevated on three, even four pillows for the first five days. Have someone pop into the pharmacy and pick up four small rectangular flay gel packs. Pop thrm into your freezer. When frozen, place a lightweight towel on your skin and then add a gel pack on each side of your ankle. The more time you spend elevating and icing the more quickly you will be up and about.
This time the healing will go very quickly because the plates were never inside your bones. because they just lay on top of the bone, or next to the bone...and the screws are nothing at this stage.
So soft tissue heals rapidly. Practice standing first, full weight. Next practice standing on just one foot. When this feels reasonable, walk.
Just listen to your body...it will tell you what is too much...by swelling and becoming painful.
My ankle is just ducky...in time your ankle will be ducky too.
hugs
judith
Sorry I can't help but I will follow your story as I want to have mine out.. How long was yours in and why did you decide to get it out?
How big was the op? I have a plate with 7 screws for Fibula and one screw for the tibia..
Hey sue i only had them for three months and they were causing problems so my doc decided to take them out but i had a plate wit 8 screwd i have read alot of ppl have problems with them but if u not having any problems i dont think u should have them removed
I am on my sixth month and when ever my foot is not elevated it starts to swell after the first ten minutes. Anyone else have that problem after three to five months.
Occasionally it feels like I can feel it moving. I also notice the cold more and one screw/ plate pokes a bit above the surface..They are my main problems . I'm also worried about long term issues as I've read about a few problems but then you only hear about the bad news stories don't you?
What sort of issues did you have?
Please keep me posted on your development and how you are feeling as today I was told by my surgeon that my 11 pins and 2 plates in the spring have to come out.I have a triameollar fracture.I broke my ankle 3 and half months ago but i still get severe swelling and around my ankle knuckles. Also so that I can have MRI scan to see if i have oesto athritis .
Surgeon said it takes 2 weeks to heal once pins are removed. He didnt say how long it would take to walk again,but surely when stiches have healed ! good luck
I didnt really have issue but it was causing a infection so it had to be removed now that its out the infection is gone.
Thanks..Good luck with it.
Sue- How far along are you? I am 8-1/2 months out from a tri-malleolar fracture and feel great. It is just that if I turn my ankle back and forth I can feel a little stinging that tells me where the screws are located on my inner ankle. On the outer part of the ankle, where the plate and most the screws are, I don't feel any screws, except sometimes when I rub my hand across the plate, I just feel like something is inside me when I twist my leg around fast. It doesn't hurt, it is just weird. My doctor said usually it's the inner screws that bug people the most, and that is my case too. I wonder if I should start by having the inner screws taken out, since that's a much easier operation, and then think more about whether the plate should come out later (which means cutting the 4" plus length to get it out). He said the holes aren't like broken bones regarding their healing. They fill quicker and it's much easier on the body. It's just a pain to have this constant reminder, now that I have moved past all this. Also, my plate feels funny when I swim. It's almost like the skin moves back and forth and the plate stays in one place, and I can feel it. Strange feeling...
For those of you who are earlier on out there reading this, this is nothing to worry about compared to the healing stage...it is just an annoyance (at least for me)...you will get through, don't worry. I am so thankful to sleep regularly (without a bunch of pillows), to run, to jump, to play with my grandkids, to climb trees etc. (I am 56 years old). I thought I might never do those things again, and that is not the case!
PS- Try not to gain too much weight while resting and waiting for the ankle to repair itself! It took me several months to work off the 5 pds I gained from lack of exercise.
I feel absolutely great i started walkin yesturday im talkin it slow one day at a time...im have a couple of stitches not many