ankle instability surgery questions. - Foot Problems Message Board

K_Lana · 10-09-2006, 08:31 AM

I hurt my ankle in Jan. and then had a grade 3 sprain in July. I spent 1 week on crutches and 2 in a walking boot. I have been going to PT regularly since then. I compete in karate and this injury has continued to get worse. I am no where near where I was even 3 weeks post injury.
I had an MRI and the OS said that I have several torn ligaments. One was unidentifiable on the MRI. One other is totally ruptured. I also have a tear in the peroneal brevis (sp?) tendon. He also said the bones are rubbing together and they have to clean out the joint.
So I'm not sure what to expect. I thought he mentioned months on crutches. A hard cast and then a walking boot. He said 6-9 mos rehab. He said it would be a reconstruction, but didn't go into details. I have an appt. on the 18th for paperwork, etc. and then to schedule the surgery.
I am counting on this to help me get back into competition form. I am very active and competing is a major part of my life.
Anyone have good/bad outcomes from this type of surgery? Any info would be helpful. Thanks.
Kris

MFord1206 · 10-09-2006, 09:59 AM

Hi Kris-

Welcome to the ankle instability club! I know exactly how you feel being active and wanting to get back to your normal activities. I have had two surgeries for instability. The first one was in Apr. '05. I had the modified Brostrom procedure (direct ligament repair) and arthroscopic debridement. With this surgery, I spent 10 days in a post-op splint, 3 weeks in a hard cast, and then a month in a walking boot. On crutches for about 3 weeks. Then had PT for about a month, and was back to a pretty much normal state within two and a half months.

Then in June of this year, I had a cycling accident and blew out the repair that had previously been made. Nine weeks ago, I had a more invasive reconstructive procedure. My doc took half of the peroneus brevis and used it to recreate the ligaments. He drilled holes through the fibula, calcaneus, and talus and looped the tendon through and then secured it with screws. With this surgery, I again 10 days in the post-op spint, 4 weeks in a hard cast, and 5 weeks in a walking boot. On crutches for four and a half weeks or so. I just got the go-ahead to ditch the boot last week (8 weeks after surgery). I am still in PT for another couple of weeks. The recovery has been alot harder with this second surgery, but it's been worth it. My ankle is so stable now! I am an avid runner and cyclist, and my doc assured me that within 4 months or so, I should be back to my normal activites. Anyways, if you have any questions don't hesitate to ask. There are several of us on here who've had similar procedures, so I am sure we can help you out!

Take Care!

Megan

dianelev · 10-10-2006, 02:04 PM

Hi Kris,
So sorry about your injury! I dont have the most encouraging story, but I hope my experience help you. About 11 years ago, I suffered a grade 3 ankle sprain and broke my fibula doing a skating jump. Although the fibula healed perfectly after about 6 weeks on crutches, my ankle was really loose feeling and unstable. Like Megan talked about, I had the Brostrom procedure to tighten the ligaments. The recovery was 6 weeks nwb and another 6 pwb. Again, I returned to skating and tennis and a year later, I ruined the repair- although I dont even remember doing that! I had a more invasive procedure and I spent another 6 weeks on crutches and then pwb for a couple months. The recovery was aweful but my ankle felt really stable.
I have a tendency to really mess things up because I again became unstable in my ankle and after trying many things, ended up with a midfoot fusion.

Finally, I could say that my ankle was stable as a rock but unfortunately, I had to give up some of the sports I loved. I guess my case was very unusual and normally people respond better than I did to corrective surgery.
Whatever you do, dont let your enthusiasm for going back to sports rush your recovery!!! A grade 3 sprain is very serious and it takes months sometimes to return to your previous level of sports. Best of luck and ask if you have more questions!

Diane

K_Lana · 10-11-2006, 04:39 AM

Thanks guys. I have a better idea what to expect. You know, when I sprained my ankle I knew it was really bad the second I did it. Yet, I fell so stupid that just a sprain (albeit a bad one) messed my ankle up so bad. It has been over 3 mos now and because the bones are grinding together when I step and rolling my ankle over daily now because nothing is holding it together, the OS told me that in the long run this will be better for me.
The hardest part for me will be to not try and do things early.

LIl1nvy · 02-24-2007, 11:40 PM

I too am facing surgery for ankle instability. I broke a sesamoid bone in the ball of my foot two years ago and the doctor has decided that he thinks my ankle instability is the ultimate cause. He wants to do two surgeries. The first is the common surgery to tighten the tendons in my ankle and create more stability. That part, I understand and I accept that it is probably necessary. The part I am not sure about is that he wants to cut my heel bone off and move it inwards just slightly and screw it back together in order to "lower my arch" because I have fairly high arches and he thinks it's contributing to my ankle over pronating. Does anybody know the name of the surgery he is referring to? Do you know if it's common or how well it works? Any information that anyone has to offer would be great. Thanks!!!

--lil1navy