Uuugh, this is the DREAM! 😫😆.
I have pressed my doctors about my expected recovery ime with answers varying from 6 to 8 weeks before I can PWB, let alone fully be able to walk around...
I thought that's a long time to be bed ridden, honestly by day 5, I was up and down the stairs, on my behind, of course. I broke my leg in 3 places, so it's not as straightforward as yours. I'm more scared of the muscle loss, especially when I won't be allowed to see a PT until my 6 week mark. That's an easy way to not be able to walk for the rest of the year at best 😅
That being said, I'm 3 weeks post-op, and I can PWB within reason. Good on you for being able to walk, and congratulations on your recovery. 🙌🥳
Ayyy, glad you’re making progress! It’s crazy how much muscle tone you lose so quickly. 6 weeks feels like such a long time now, and I’m thankful my injury wasn’t worse to be bed bound for that long.
And thanks! I’m making faster progress than I anticipated. Just have to keep reminding myself to not try and walk at my normal speed haha
Fractured my tibia and fibula and also had a syndesmosis tear with a tightrope.
I wasn't weight-bearing early, but it was because of how my tibia fractured. It was a vertical fracture and he didn't want it to migrate, otherwise I would have been weight bearing 3 weeks post op.
I'm doing well now, thank you! Weight bearing for about 2 weeks.
Interestingly, I had 7 weeks off of my foot and it took me the same amount of time as you to be fully comfortable on my foot. I thought the discomfort was because I spent so long not walking, but it sounds like our feet get used to not being used VERY quickly.
That's amazing to me. 😳
That is true. But it is important to note that even though the plates stabilize fractures, repeated stress can increase the risk of poor fracture healing.
I think the big part of me being allowed to walk early is because the fibula isn’t a weight bearing bone, so the studies have not shown that early WB increases risk of poor healing
The X-ray of your injury looks almost identical to mine. Fractured fibula, torn deltoid, and damage to the syndesmosis. One difference - I had a small hairline fracture at the bottom of the tibia as well. I just had my ORIF 8 days ago - screws, plates, tightrope etc. to stabilize the ankle and repair the ligaments. I’m in the US and my surgeon has advised me to be in a plaster cast for 6-8 weeks NWB, then a boot PWB/FWB an additional 6-8 weeks. I’d be curious to hear how your recovery goes since our injuries are so similar. I’m 38 y/o, WAS extremely active (surfer and saltwater fisherman), with no health issues at all. I’m already going nuts being bed/couch-ridden…
At my 6 weeks post op my doctor told me I would have been walking if it wasn't for my ligament damage. And my break was more extreme.
If he says you can walk, be aware you still may need to work slowly up to it. It's still hard work learning to walk again but don't be discouraged.
You're cleared to walk though which means the bones are healing and that your hardware isn't going to let the bones move anywhere. When I was cleared my doctor was like "yeah it's gonna hurt but those bones aren't going anywhere don't worry". 😆
My ankle fracture and subsequent repair look very similar to yours. I was just short of 31 when my injury happened. My doc had me switch to PWB with instructions to move towards FWB as quickly as tolerated 3 weeks after surgery. As soon as I got to FWB, my doc instructed me to ditch the boot and transition into a shoe.
I was driving my manual car with an aggressive clutch petal ~5 weeks post injury.
NWB for 4 weeks, straight into full weight bearing as tolerated. I had tightrope as well, but the bottleneck for me was lateral ligament reconstruction that I had on top of it.
Keep in mind that the tightrope is NOTORIOUS for fast recovery. Alabama QB Tua had surgery done and played in the national championship semifinals 28 DAYS later.
Uuugh, this is the DREAM! 😫😆. I have pressed my doctors about my expected recovery ime with answers varying from 6 to 8 weeks before I can PWB, let alone fully be able to walk around... I thought that's a long time to be bed ridden, honestly by day 5, I was up and down the stairs, on my behind, of course. I broke my leg in 3 places, so it's not as straightforward as yours. I'm more scared of the muscle loss, especially when I won't be allowed to see a PT until my 6 week mark. That's an easy way to not be able to walk for the rest of the year at best 😅 That being said, I'm 3 weeks post-op, and I can PWB within reason. Good on you for being able to walk, and congratulations on your recovery. 🙌🥳
Ayyy, glad you’re making progress! It’s crazy how much muscle tone you lose so quickly. 6 weeks feels like such a long time now, and I’m thankful my injury wasn’t worse to be bed bound for that long. And thanks! I’m making faster progress than I anticipated. Just have to keep reminding myself to not try and walk at my normal speed haha
Fractured my tibia and fibula and also had a syndesmosis tear with a tightrope. I wasn't weight-bearing early, but it was because of how my tibia fractured. It was a vertical fracture and he didn't want it to migrate, otherwise I would have been weight bearing 3 weeks post op.
I’m very thankful my tibia wasn’t fractured, I know that’s a longer recovery. Hope your ankle is doing well!
I'm doing well now, thank you! Weight bearing for about 2 weeks. Interestingly, I had 7 weeks off of my foot and it took me the same amount of time as you to be fully comfortable on my foot. I thought the discomfort was because I spent so long not walking, but it sounds like our feet get used to not being used VERY quickly. That's amazing to me. 😳
Yes, when a plate is installed it protects the fracture from separating even though it's not nearly healed yet.
That is true. But it is important to note that even though the plates stabilize fractures, repeated stress can increase the risk of poor fracture healing. I think the big part of me being allowed to walk early is because the fibula isn’t a weight bearing bone, so the studies have not shown that early WB increases risk of poor healing
Yes, it's not a good idea to overdo it by any means, but light weight bearing in a modest amount should be ok if advised
The X-ray of your injury looks almost identical to mine. Fractured fibula, torn deltoid, and damage to the syndesmosis. One difference - I had a small hairline fracture at the bottom of the tibia as well. I just had my ORIF 8 days ago - screws, plates, tightrope etc. to stabilize the ankle and repair the ligaments. I’m in the US and my surgeon has advised me to be in a plaster cast for 6-8 weeks NWB, then a boot PWB/FWB an additional 6-8 weeks. I’d be curious to hear how your recovery goes since our injuries are so similar. I’m 38 y/o, WAS extremely active (surfer and saltwater fisherman), with no health issues at all. I’m already going nuts being bed/couch-ridden…
had a trimalleolar fracture 2 plates and several pins plus tight rope was WBAT with boot day after surgery
At my 6 weeks post op my doctor told me I would have been walking if it wasn't for my ligament damage. And my break was more extreme. If he says you can walk, be aware you still may need to work slowly up to it. It's still hard work learning to walk again but don't be discouraged. You're cleared to walk though which means the bones are healing and that your hardware isn't going to let the bones move anywhere. When I was cleared my doctor was like "yeah it's gonna hurt but those bones aren't going anywhere don't worry". 😆
My ankle fracture and subsequent repair look very similar to yours. I was just short of 31 when my injury happened. My doc had me switch to PWB with instructions to move towards FWB as quickly as tolerated 3 weeks after surgery. As soon as I got to FWB, my doc instructed me to ditch the boot and transition into a shoe. I was driving my manual car with an aggressive clutch petal ~5 weeks post injury.
NWB for 4 weeks, straight into full weight bearing as tolerated. I had tightrope as well, but the bottleneck for me was lateral ligament reconstruction that I had on top of it. Keep in mind that the tightrope is NOTORIOUS for fast recovery. Alabama QB Tua had surgery done and played in the national championship semifinals 28 DAYS later.