PTTD Help me get back to work! - Foot Problems Message Board

Rachel1972 · 03-11-2008, 12:25 PM

Hi, I have been seeing my doctor for about a year on foot pain (podiatrist) and at first we thought it was plantar fasciitis so he did a cortisone injection right below the inside of my ankle, about 1 inch lower and 1/2 inch below the ankle...it seemed to work for a few months so I Returned to my doctor and we tried one more shot in the same place, I have a swollen area right under my ankle and a little more towards the toes like sticks out about 1/2 inch and is about 2 inches in diameter. I returned to my doctor yesterday (1 month after the last cortisone shot) cause I could not move my foot side to side without extreme pain, he decided to place me in a brace that goes from right below the knee to my toes cause my other option was a cast, I would like to try brace first...Im not optomistic that this is going to help me at all.

Do you think the shots might have made it progress faster?..What stage do you think Im at?...Turning my foot side to side is impossible due to the pain, but I can stand on toes, I do have pain when I do it but I think I have a high tolerance for pain so I say it doesn't hurt to bad, but I could see it being more and more painful if I had to do it over and over. Pushing down the trash in the small trashcan with my foot at work was extremely painful.

I am on restriced duty at work and I cant stand it, I am a Female 36 years of age, Correctional Officer at an Arizona State Prison and I am on our SWAT (TSU)team...anything you can add that might help me return to full duty sooner would be appreciated cause I cant stand missing our drills and work. I love my job and duties. I am on my feet approximatly 6 hours a day when on regular duty.

Ty for any input in advance,

Sincerely,

Officer Rutherford

kristim06 · 03-11-2008, 01:44 PM

The first thing I am going to tell you is go see an orthopedic foot and ankle specialist. Your podiatrist although probably helping you in some ways is not completely helping you he or she should have already referred you to see a specialist. Mine did within 6 months of treatments not working, the trick after the refferral is to find a good orthopedic foot and ankle specialist I went through about 6 of them until I finally met this last one. But even then if you do have PTTD it is (well can be) a long process I had to go through all the non surgical methods first which took about 9 months and then went through the surgery about a year after I met my doctor. I had it done on Jan 24th and it will take me 9 months to fully recover but at 7 weeks post op I am walking in a walking boot (and still sometime crutches or a cane) but hey walking is walking. I will let you know anything you want from my experience. I too have a very high tolerance for pain and I am very young and physically fit as well (24 year old marathon runner).

Kristin

Rachel1972 · 03-11-2008, 02:07 PM

He is a specialist, he is a foot and ankle doctor...

I really dont have many to choose from where I live he is the closest one and that is 30 miles away, next option is Flagstaff which is 90 miles...

Do you think at the stage Im at this leg brace might help? or do you think it's gone to far?

I read that PTTD at first can mimic the same pain as plantar fascitiis and I truely thought that was what I had, but after reading up on PTTD I am certian thats what it is...just wish I knew what stage I was at so I could figure out what type of treatment is perfect.

janewhite1 · 03-11-2008, 02:49 PM

Kristen is talking about an orthopedist who is a foot and ankle surgeon, not a podiatrist. They have more training, and, while there are some great podiatrists out there, I'd say that with a really difficult case, an ortho is a better bet. According to the American Orthopedic Foot and Ankle Society, there are 16 of them in Arizona. Most are in the Phoenix area, but one is in Flagstaff.

It's worth a try. My orthopedic foot and ankle surgeon figured out the best treatment for my problem in our first appointment.

Rachel1972 · 03-11-2008, 03:03 PM

Ok, thank you.