i am having my ankle fused the end of august, and i am petrified,,,of course! two weeks of a brace in bed,,,then two weeks of a cast, changed every two weeks until 8 weeks,,,then he puts me in a sneaker and off i go.

does anyone know what recovery is like after that? he said it would take up to a year to not notice me limping. i'm hoping i can still walk and golf.

am i in the wrong message board? i honestly felt that i was going to be on the road to a quicker recovery than first told to me by my surgeon...but reading in this board...i'm scared.:confused:

hooty-

Everyone heals differently from surgery, it all depends on the type of fusion, the ammount of time that the injury was present before surgery and your adhearnace to any weight or movement restrictions.

Your recovery time estimated by your Dr seems very very quick which would lead me to assume that you are not having an extremely invasive fusion proceedure.

My best advice would be to try to relax and prepare yourself and your home for post-surgery. Try to have easy to prepare meals on hand (make them and freeze them now so you can just pop them in the microwave) and make sure that things are within easy reach. Plan on doing alot of sitting, so get things to help keep you occupied and to stave off any boredom and say 'yes' to any offers for help that come your way.

Please let us know how you are doing and remember, many of us have had pre-op nerves and are here to listen and talk if you need it.

Hiya,

I just had an ankle replacement, but before when I was deciding between a replacement and fusion, I talked to a lot of people who have had fusion. The recovery times seem to vary greatly from one person to the next, but the vast majority seem to be happy with the results. From what I have heard golf is usually possible after you have recovered enough....think in months here, but without pain.

Any surgery is very nerveracking, I'm sure someone who has had fusion will reply to you and help answer your questions better, but keep positive and definately prepare the house etc and get friends/family to help do things like supermarket shopping with you etc afterwards.

Good luck!!

Hi,
I have had my ankle fused 4 months ago and I know exactly how you are feeling. Yes, it is a long healing process. The 1st 2 weeks I had like a wrap on before a cast to make sure the swelling was down enough for tightness in the cast. I had the cast on for 2 months and then went to a boot for 2 months. I am just 3 days out of my boot right now and was told to get a pair of running shoes. I started PT to strenghten my heel,foot and muscles and tendons that was so confined during this ordeal. It is true that everyone is different. I am finding that I am not doing very well with the shoes. I feel that my foot has more movement barefoot. I have to walk with a cane to learn the gate of how to walk.
After my surgery, I used a roller cart that you rest you leg on with your knee bent. It is so much easier than crutches or a wheelchair. This frees you hands and it's very easy to get around the house with. You might want to check into this before surgery. I rented mine.
Let us know how you are doing. In the mean time take care and know that you are not the only one out there that is going through this. It really helps to be able to communicate with others from all over the world.

my doc discouraged me on ankle replacement...said it wouldn't last the rest of my life...(i'm 56). how is/was your outcome? what type of replacement did you have and how did you do with it? were you able to move about right away? thanks for your encouragement.

penybobeny,,,again,,my thanks to you.

Hi,
I had a Hintegra ankle replacement, in Swizterland, that implant is not FDA approved. I was weightbearing after 4 days, and fully weightbearing in my walking boot by two weeks. I am only nearly 8 weeks post-op now, so early days yet. I got my boot off at 6 weeks and am having PT and going well, my movement has improved already and pain free. I am only 26, so it won't last my lifetime, but I plan to have more, or fusion when this one fails. It is unknown how long it will last. Since you are so close to surgery I would be hesitant to contemplate changing to a replacement, but you could get a second opinion if you are of two minds. I was very anti-fusion before my operation, because I didn't want one myself, but now I am less emotional about it, and have heard many good stories, I do think now that it can be a good solution. It depends on the person and their ankle, and the abilities of the surgeons around.

Good luck with the operation and when you are nervous or have questions just post on the board, talking to other people who have already had fusion, like walkabout will really help you through it much easier!!

thanks to everyone for your help. i'm going to see if i can find a scooter tomorrow. sounds like the best thing for getting around. i'll keep intouch. :)

Well, I had my pre surgery appointment yesterday, and I had thought that I would have a bit more latitude in my recovery than I will. I thought even tho it said bed to bath for two months, I assumed really just two weeks til the cast was put on. I thought I'd get a cart like you mentioned and kind of scoot my way thru this ordeal. Doc said he'd write a script for the scooter, but really told me emphatically, that after the two weeks, my options were bed, bath, sofa and back again. I asked,,what about cooking, or anything else similar...he said NO cooking, no anything,,and if I did not take the surgery seriously and give myself the best chance to heal, than I'd be chasing it for years to get it right.

So...I guess I'll follow his advice and suck it up, after a big cry....but I am wondering now...and perhaps you can help...can I use little hand held weights and do my biceps or upper body stuff if I don't move my leg or get out of bed? curious and forgot to ask. thanks again.





Hi,
I have had my ankle fused 4 months ago and I know exactly how you are feeling. Yes, it is a long healing process. The 1st 2 weeks I had like a wrap on before a cast to make sure the swelling was down enough for tightness in the cast. I had the cast on for 2 months and then went to a boot for 2 months. I am just 3 days out of my boot right now and was told to get a pair of running shoes. I started PT to strenghten my heel,foot and muscles and tendons that was so confined during this ordeal. It is true that everyone is different. I am finding that I am not doing very well with the shoes. I feel that my foot has more movement barefoot. I have to walk with a cane to learn the gate of how to walk.
After my surgery, I used a roller cart that you rest you leg on with your knee bent. It is so much easier than crutches or a wheelchair. This frees you hands and it's very easy to get around the house with. You might want to check into this before surgery. I rented mine.
Let us know how you are doing. In the mean time take care and know that you are not the only one out there that is going through this. It really helps to be able to communicate with others from all over the world.

Wow!!! My Surgeon was extremely cautious with me (so I thought) until I hear this news. You must listen to what you are told. You certainly don't want anything to happen. I hope you have enough help around the house. Plan ahead with meals, projects that you can do laying down, reading material, phone near by etc...Be prepared to be in it for the long haul.

As far as the weights, I don't see any reason why you could'nt use them with your arms. Honestly, any way you can keep up with your strength the better. It is amazing how fast muscle can go when not in use.

When is your surgery date? After you are able, keep in contact with your progress. If you have any questions, I hope I can help you out. Do you have a laptop computer? That would be ideal if you can't get up and around. At least this could help pass the time.

Best wishes,

Karen

that is what i plan to do...got my laptop, books, tv, remote and am doing nutrasystem...diet wise...for me mostly, and to also make it easier on my husband in preparing meals for me! my surgery is on august 29...wednesday.

i will keep intouch...thanks so much. p

Good luck with the operation!!!

hey...i'm there...surgery happening..and i'll be intouch with all of you/us...thaks for the help.....p

Hooty

I hope your surgery goes well. Please keep us updated. Take care.

Mus

Hooty

I hope your surgery goes well on Wednesday. Please keep us updated.

Music:)

well, i had the surgery on wednesday, and when doc ggot in there, found out that my tallus bone was 'porous'....whoops!!!!! evidently it didn't show on last years' xrays or mri. :confused:

so at this point, i am recovering at home,,,as planned with five plus screws in it and hoping that it will fuse. i'm sure in alot of pain now...but have meds to control that:jester:
next appointment is mid september..when i'm supposed to be casted...we'll see, but he did say that it would most likely take longer than i had hoped.

i'll keep ya all informed...

Sorry to hear it will take longer to heal! Take it real easy and try to stay ahead of your pain with meds and ice. I have 4 screws and a broken drill bit left in my ankle. They kept the bit in because they didn't want to tamper with the bone any more than they had to. The Doc said the reason why it broke was because my bones were so hard. I am at the point right now after 4 1/2 months, to start walking on my own. It is not easy for me at all. I have one leg shorter ( the ankle fusion side) than the other and it makes it even tougher for me to learn how to walk. I had to get a little bit of an orthodic lift on my sole of my shoe just to try to even things out.

I guess we all are going to have different issues to deal with. The one nice thing about this site, is we can share our ventures with one another and get information, incouragement and hope. Just knowing that someone out there other than your loved ones, can totally understand what we go through.

Take care of yourself and update often.:)

well, today i see the doc after two weeks of wearing this brace...supposed to switch it into a cast. i pray that he x rays and sees some healing...and then i'll try to make it thru the next two weeks, another cast change. my back hurts from staying in bed...and if i understand, i'll be able to sit in my living room, with my leg up...at least it will be a change!:)

i'll let you know tonight...(i hope)

Hope everything goes well! How is the pain in your ankle at this point? Is'nt bathing fun:jester: .I'm sure you will be glad to just look back at all this. Yes, let us know what the Doc said.

when i asked him if it might have made a difference if he had known that i had osteoporous in the ankle bone, as to whether we would have done the surgery, he was rather defensive. i think he may have screwed up, and tried to cover up by saying we wouldn't have seen the porous bone,,,which is not true, i don't think.

he told me i have to forget about all that and concentrate about healing...that it will take longer, and i'll probably be wearing a boot when the cast is removed until he can remove two pins...the one that went thru the tibia thru the talus into the ankle. that is the key...to get that to stick.

anyway,,,i have a new yellow cast..(didn't know i could choose colors!) and now i'll wait for three weeks to have it changed again.

pain is there still, but i have more pain meds, so feel good about that.

thanks for keeping intouch. p;)

Did you know that it isn't mandatory to connect your tibia? My tibia was shaved off at the bottom and left unattached. I know it sounds weird (as I thought it was), but I checked it out online and it is a pretty common proceedure. I think the reason for this is to use less screws in your ankle as the tibia is no longer needed (so I was told). I'm sorry for your news:( . This whole thing is such a big deal in our lives. And it takes so long to heal. It just gets frustrating! Hang in there and things will get better for you. Are you able to sit up now?

yes...i can sit up in a chair now...so that will help...he wants me to keep it elevated above my heart to cut down on swelling, of course.

not manditory to connect your tibia? wow...i didn't know that..nor did he tell me. honestly, i've not been able to find any good current websites on ankle fusion. i keep trying.

thanks for the info. p