Fractured Tibia and Fibula (Broken Lower Leg Bones) with Fixation Surgery (symptom, cure)
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Gotta excercise bike on the way can't wait to cycle a few imaginary miles. I used to love going to the gym aswell my get a bench or something for inside the house to stay fit.
Monica- I know exactly what you mean. One thing is for sure this injury has made me appreciate even the smallest of everyday movements e.g standing up to put pants on. Just hang in there!!
Hi Everyone, Well Thank goodness all of my company is gone and I have the house to myself again! I did enjoy being able to enjoy some conversation but it just got to be too much after a while. Now I can get the house back in order again and I can actually do it myself. That is something else that I can add to the milestone list...I can do a lot of the cleaning now, though I must say I definately DID enjoy the husband doing it!!! heh heh heh!!! I will be so sad when I have to back to doing it all by my lonesome
I have a question for you Manuel..I used to date a cyclist years ago. He wasn't a pro but he did shave his legs, and the reason he gave me was that it helped cut down on the wind "drag" on his body. It didn't sound like it would work to me, but I was wondering what you thought, just out of curiosity. The cuts and scrapes reason makes much more sense.
Well, I have about a week and a half before I start PT and I must admit I am getting very anxious about it. I still cannot bend by toes or my ankle and it's frustating as well as scary. And everyone has noted here that PT WILL HURT!!! And as Gregg and Kitsboy have reminded us all about how great it is to be active again, I admit I am looking foward to being at the point where I can break a sweat again...heeheeheehee
Christina, I went thru the same problem with not being able to sleep, It's only in the past several weeks that I have been able to sleep in the bed and sleep thru the night. The first 2 months after the wreck, I was up till all hours of the morning. Have you thought about asking your dr. for something to help you sleep. There are many different drugs on the market that are non-addictive. I wonder if anyone else in our predicament has also experienced problems sleeping??
Input anyone on this question??
Well I am going to head off and fix some lunch. Christina... I wish a safe and enjoyable trip for you and your family. Have a great time and take care of that leg!!!!!
Former Recon read my post on page 59 its # 582. I had to give myself shots of Lovenox in the gut too! It really sucked! I got bruises everywhere from hitting muscle. I still have a non union and may need more surgery! It has been a year and a few months. I figure this is better than when they were contimplating amputation in the trauma center. This is a ***** of a break that causes a lot of pain. My Doctor said why do you think they shoot horses! I have been hit with shrapnel that blew a whole in my foot and my leg and that did not hurt compared to this shattered leg. Keep up the faith and a positive mental outlook and you'll be ok.
do you have access to a pool? I used the pool at the YMCA to learn to walk again. I had the same problem not being able to bend my ankle and toes. The pool was perfect because you are not putting full wieght on your leg. The people in the Y thought I was crazy walking back and forth everyday but it worked great!!!
I have been reading through some of the posts here and am failry jealous. It sucks that everyone is having leg problems but they are healing!I hope everyone gets better real soon! I shattered my right tibula and fibula in February 2006 along with some other stuff and am still suffering from that particular break. It was slow to heal from that start. The following summer my docter/surgeon wanted to do do inter fixation but first had to do all theses tests -bone scan, WBCS, the works. X rays showed that the leg had mostly healed but it was on a noticable angle. He would have to re break it. So in October 2006 i had Open Reduction Internal Fixation. a plate with 7 screws were placed in. I finally got off the crutch by christmas after learning to walk again with my right leg and had a walkin boot thing for a month after. Somethin seemed wrong straight after surgery. My leg was hot, swollen, etc. but my docter didnt believe there was anything wrong untill it swelled even more in may 2007. I was given antibiotics and told to wait it out... I did and it kept coming back -each time i got more meds. the swellin went down somewhat untill i tryed out for the scholl soccer team March/April 2008. My leg swelled so badly i coudnt walk anymore. Again i was given more antibiotics and was schedualed for all sorts of tests. By the time they were all completed it was summer and my docter was going on vacation so couldnt see me. I went to camp for 6 weeks with the army cadets and then it all went down hill. It started with mild swellin and i ended up being taken to the hospital and was given crutches untill the end of camp. When i returned home i immediatly saw my docter and scedualed to have surgery to take the plate/screws out early September 2008. When i had surgery the docter saw that the bone had completly grown over the plate/screws and had to chisel it away to get the 'hardwere' out. While in surgery the docter toke samples of the tissue surrounding the plate. When tested they came back positive forinfection and for the 7th or 8th time i was put on antibiotics. This time for a month. It only toke 6 weeks to recover from that and it felt fine at first. But, now the same pain from before surgery is quickly returning. My legs becomes hot and lokks puffy and there are bumpbs of bone that werent there a few weeks ago. What do i do?!!?!?! I dont want to wrroy my mum anymore then i have already but i have noticed even siting with my leg stright in front of me sets off the pain...It worries me because of the on going infection i have had with it and because my docter says he can only operate so many times. anyways...thanks for letting me rant. it helps to get it out to someone...if anyone has any suggestions plese let me no! oh, and again hope everyone gets better soon!
Last edited by Terrorizer; 12-29-2008 at 06:46 PM..
do you have access to a pool? I used the pool at the YMCA to learn to walk again. I had the same problem not being able to bend my ankle and toes. The pool was perfect because you are not putting full wieght on your leg. The people in the Y thought I was crazy walking back and forth everyday but it worked great!!!
Mike
Hi Mike! Thank you so much for the wonderful suggestion! Unfortunately I live in a small town so there is no YMCA. I have an above ground pool, but it's a wee bit too cold at the moment to use!!! LOL!!! Maybe it would shock me into moving faster!!! hahahaha!!!
The place where I will be doing my PT is a small branch office here in town and they don't even have one. If they order pool therapy I'll have to drive 50 miles roundtrip to get to their main office.
Well, I can only wait and see what they have in store for me, but in the meantime I am doing what I can here at home.
I have read your incredible story several times over. I cannot get over what you are going through and I want you to know I will keep you in my prayers. I cannot believe that your dr. left for vacation knowing you were still severely ill and didn't at least provide a colleague to follow up on the test results and take care of your infection. Lord knows I am no expert but I have to ask you this.... Have you considered getting a different opinion from another doctor??? From what I have been learning from the forum, it seems like TWO YEARS of infections definately does not sound normal. And now Sept. and Dec 2008 still showing infections. I know it must be hard keeping this to yourself with not wanting to worry your mom, but just think how she would feel if things get so out of hand and god forbid you are faced with losing your leg. Do you maybe have another family member you can talk with and who can be there with you as support for you and your mom?I realize I don't know your situation but I know that if I was in your situation I would absolutely be going to a different doctor / doctors for another outlook on the treatment plan. Especially since your current dr. says he can only operate only so many more times?
I am so glad you have found this site because as you said it helps to get it all out to someone, and there are so many good, caring people here, and a lot of good advice from the people who have made it thru and are at the end of the road of recovery and getting back to their lives. Just stay strong!! Keep your mind busy..you know read a good book or start one of your own!! Keep a diary so when the day comes and you're well you can look back and know that you were strong enough to make it thru. Try to keep smiling.. I go to YouTube all the time and watch funny videos. And when I start to feel down I come right here and let it all out or I read how someone I have gotten to know is feeling better and has turned a corner, like getting their cast off or standing or walking for the first time in months. I am happy knowing someone else is making it thru.
Do whatever you can to stay strong. I will pray for you and for your recovery.
Monica
Spiral fracture of the tib & fib...recovery in progress...
Great thread! Lots of useful info! Here's my experience...
I slipped on the ice and ended up with a Spiral Fracture of the tib fib, this happened Dec 5, 08 (so 3.5 weeks ago) this was my first break.
I had a titanium rod put in along with screws at my ankle and my knee, the doc said its perminently in there.
It doesn't help that I'm 6.5 months pregnant because I'm not supposed to lie on my back at all which makes sleeping and all the bed resting a lot more uncomfortable. That and I have to get up to go to the bathroom literally every hour or so. This was a huge problem in the first 2 weeks because everytime I had my leg down I'd get such intense pressure and pain all down my leg until I elevated it again, but the pressure slowely goes away, (its worse at night) 3 weeks post op is when I could sit up with my leg resting on the ground.
Drink lots of milk or anything with lots of calcium in it, this will help the bones fuse together quicker for a speedy recovery.
I'm able to put some weight bearing on my leg now, with the help of crutches I can walk with both feet on the ground. I'm sure its still a ways to go until full recovery though, as my leg is swollen and my knee does not bend fully outwards or inwards like its supposed to yet.
...Does anyone know how long until the leg is fully flexible??
But my advice that the doc told me is keep testing the limits that the leg/ankle can take, just enough weight bearing that you can handle the little bit of pain, just don't overdue it...
That way your muscles and leg doesn't "forget" how to do its job. Otherwise your muscles will stiffen up making the recovery longer.
I'm trying to keep positive and enjoy the free time... its not the easiest but I know from personal expirience that a negative attitude will have negative effects on the healing process.
So everyone suffering from this injury keep your heads up high and just think that everyday it gets a little bit easier and closer to walking!
Monica
Thank you very much for your reply! The advice about spending time on other things is helpfull...espeacially about youtube! I will try it the next time i need to.What you say about getting a second opinion is very true...i should get one. I have talked to my family docter/ER docters about this and they say the waiting list for a second opinion were i live is atleast a year. When I went to camp the docters there were very concerned but once i got home i couldnt keep in touch with them. It is very frustrating. This is the second speacilist I have had and neither seem to no what they are doing. I have tried to do some research on my own, on the internet but not much comes up. I found this page talking about bone spurs which could result in some of the stuff ive had but it doesn't explain others (ie.the bumps on ym tibia seem to be growing). When the holidays are over I plan to visist my school nurse. Mayeb she will have some ideas of what I should do.What you say about telling my mum is also true...I should. I have expressed to her that my leg has been hurting more over the past weeks and she seems concerned but I always dismiss it...im afraid of going to a docter and possibly finding out that there is something very wrong/I need more surgery. As for talking to other relatives i cant. My parents are split up and we are immagreants-all other family is an ocean apart. I dont want to worry her. When i tell her about how bad the pain gets she gets really upset. When I had surgery this past September and woke up in recovery i couldnt even think because of how bad the pain was. I only remember something of me between moaning and screaming untill the nurse gave me something that knocked me out. When my mum heard about this (she wasn't in recovery with me at the time) she looked terrified. I dont want to put her through having to see something like that. It is hard to keep smiling when this problem has gone on for so long. This chat will deffinitly help...it is incouraging hearing how other people improving. However, i feel somewhat bad for writing in this chat. It sounds like most people here are suffering from a broken leg. I am dealing with the effects it has had on me, not the actual broken bone itslef. I hope it is ok that is still use this chat though since what I am going through is connected to a broken leg. I also feel bad because evryone here is either on crutches or has some disability with there leg (hope you all get well soon!) and i am able to walk/somewhat run. Well, I can do the walking ok for sometime- the mall is hard because i can only walk around for 20-30 minutes or so before the pain gets to bad-stairs hurt alot at times, but running sets it off almost immediatly and puts me down for days. (bad because i still need a gym credit to grduate). Its very interesting because somedays I have no pain at all and then others times really bad. Or, when I am just sitting somewere it will randomly flare up. I am happy to hear you had a good Christmas. Enjoy watching Sex and the City. Also, congrtultions on being able to stand in the shower. It was months before I was able to do that! When i first broke my right leg I had also broken my left ankle and cracked my breast bone. I hope you will do well in PT-I never went...Well, i guess i have gone on another rant. I should get going. Get well soon and thanks again for the advice! BTW I a 16 and live in Ontario.
Great Site!! I shattered my left tibia, fibula, and fractured my ankle in the afternoon of 9/26/07 in a motorcycle accident. I was taken to my local hospital (and following x-rays) I was told my injury was one of the most severe they had seen and they would need to transfer me.
I was transferred to a hospital two hours south (which happens to be one of the largest/most surgeries performed hospitals in the country) for more x-rays and cat scans. They couldn’t operate do to the severe swelling and were worried about compartment syndrome. I was placed in a splint.
Around 4:00 P.M. on the 27th I had operation #1. My leg from the knee down was placed in an External Fixator.
On the morning of Oct, 1 I had operation #2. They removed the Fixator and performed the IM Nail procedure on my tibia (Nail + 4 screws).
On the afternoon of the 4th they removed the surgical dressing and my lower leg and foot were so swollen and a reddish purple color (it looked like the skin was ready to split) They casted over it and sent me home.
I went back to see my doctor two weeks later for x-rays and to have the staples removed.
When they removed my cast it felt like my foot was falling off and my leg looked dead (I almost passed-out). My doc said I needed more work, but we need the swelling to go down a little more; they were hoping another week would be long enough and scheduled operation #3.
On the morning of Oct 24th I had operation #3. They realigned the leg and installed a 9” plate and eight screws on/in my fibula as well as installing two more screws into the tibia.
I was released on the 26th with another fiberglass cast.
On the 8th of Nov. I went in for a checkup and had the cast/staples removed and x-rays. My ankle, foot, and toes had become completely frozen at this point. My doc put me in an orthopedic boot so I could take it off a couple times a day a work on loosing up my foot/ankle/toes.
On the 28th of Nov. I went in for another checkup. X-rays showed no healing and I was only able to gain a little movement in my foot. Doc wrote a script for physical therapy and wanted me to go from non weight barring to 25% with the boot on.
On the 3rd of Jan. I went in for another checkup. Still no healing. Moved the weight barring to 50% and ordered a Smith and Nephew bone stimulator.
On the 31st of Jan. another checkup. This time there is a slight sign of healing.
On the 28th of Feb. another checkup. Healing is evident. Weight barring is moved to my tolerance.
On the 24th of March I take my first steps on an un-weighted treadmill. A few hours later I took my first steps with one crutch.
On the 10th of April another checkup. Another gain in healing is evident. Doc says I can stop wearing the boot and issued an air cast.
On May 22nd another checkup. First time I was able to go to the Doc with one crutch (was still using two for any sort of distance). No additional signs of healing and the Doc is guessing I’m somewhere around 65%. He orders a CT-Scan.
On July 3rd another checkup. Still no additional healing. Doc says CT-Scan showed holes in the tibia and I had reached non-union status. He said the hardware would start to fatigue and break. Surgery is scheduled for the 9th and physical therapy is discontinued.
On the 9th of July I had operation #4. The IM Nail was removed as well as the 6 screws in the tibia. The inside of the tibia was re-reamed. A larger IM Nail and 5 screws were installed. I was placed back in my boot and weight bearing was back to 25% (back on two crutches just as I was getting used to one).
On the 25th of July another checkup. X-ray show no change/staples are removed. Weight bearing still 25%.
On the 21st of Aug. another checkup. No signs of additional healing. Weight bearing is moved to my tolerance. Starting physical therapy again.
On the 26th of Sept. I put my crutches away and start using a cain.
On the 21st of Oct. another checkup. Starting to show some additional signs of healing and the Doc says we still have a ways to go. I am released back to work. My next appointment is on the 23rd of Dec. and my Doc said he may order another CT-Scan at that time depending on how things look.
On the 15th of Nov. I put my cain away. I can now walk without a cain and have only a slight limp (it gets worse the farther I walk). My leg and knee still swell and most of my pain is in my knee. I can only climb stairs one at a time (bring my bad leg up to my good leg). I’m only able to walk at a moderate speed (because of pain in my leg and ankle) due to the higher impact one experiences when walking more briskly.
I was told the day of my accident that my leg would never be 100%, but I figure if there is a will there is a way. I’ve set my goals high and anyone reading this should too.
I’ll have been going to physical therapy for a year on the 5th of Dec. except for my 7 week hiatus due to surgery #4. I go three days a week and I’m usually there 2-1/2 hours per session. I have been using my bone stimulator since the 11th of January, so coupling that with the other exercises I do at home I spend another 2-1/2 hours a day, and all that work is starting to pay off. I also bought a bicycle in mid September (I had been riding a stationary at PT and thought I should be able to match the gearing to my ability). The last day I was able to ride was the 7th of November due to the weather turning, but in that time I was able to accumulate 623 miles. And yes I couldn’t even walk without crutches when I started; I just put fear aside and moved forward. With the cycling being low/no impact I’ve really been able to strengthen my leg, and I feel it’s been a big help to getting me to the point I’m at now.
To those of you who can barley move due to pain or get out of bed because of swelling. Don’t give up the days will get brighter. The body and a strong mind have the power to overcome almost anything.
Best regards,
Ry
*Note: I’m a 27 year old male/non smoker/good overall health.
UPDATE:
Hi Everyone,
Monica sent me a PM and asked for an update and because I'm such a nice guy I thought I would give one... lol
I went back to see my Doctor on December 23 and they took like 8 x-rays. The nurse said he wanted to get a good look at things. The X-rays looked really great by comparison to prior ones. The Tibia looks really bumpy and the Fibula still looks really jagged. There is still a fracture/jagged area near the center of the tibia which my Doctor noted as an area of interest/concern, but based on what the x-rays showed he decided not to order another CT-Scan; saying it wouldn’t be worth the radiation exposure at this point. He asked about my pain and I told him it was still averaging a 4 on a 0-10 scale. I still can’t walk at anything more than a slow/moderate pace due to the lager impact one experiences when walking more briskly plus you require more ankle flex with a longer stride and that cause me to limp more. With the snow on the ground now; I find it hard to walk on uneven surfaces, from a pain standpoint, anyway. My leg aches quite badly when out walking in the cold. When I'm just sitting around I only have a dull pain in my tibia and the fibula has more of a constant pain where the plate is, but the majority of my pain is in my knee. I still can’t go up and down stairs(alternating steps), kneel, or get up off the floor due to the pain in my leg. So anyway.... I mentioned all these things to my doctor and he said they may get better with some more strengthening or they may not. He left me on a 15lbs. weight restriction and said to avoid stairs; I asked him if there was anything else I shouldn’t do and he said he would strongly advise against running or jogging or any other impact activity. He said I could do anything else to my tolerance. I'm still going to PT and he wants me to keep using my bone stimulator. I'm scheduled to go back to the Doc. in April unless I feel things are going down hill prior to that. He said we'll discuss my shortcomings/pain more at that time and he also mentioned possibly having to remove the plate to alleviate some of the discomfort. At one time he said he wouldn’t remove any hardware, so I'm not sure what to make of this. I hope he doesn’t decide to remove the IM Nail; I'm already one my second one and it wasn’t anymore fun than the first from a pain and recovery standpoint. Has anyone had a full length tibia IM Nail removed after the bone was fully healed?? What was the recovery time and pain like?? If you read my first post you will notice that I was released back to work on the 21st of October; well that didn’t happen... My employer said I wasn’t well enough at that point and told me to stay in touch. I'm excited to announce that I have a definite return date of January 5th; I'm so excited to get back!!
I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas and that 2009 brings nothing but happiness to each and every one of you!!! Remember time is your friend and a positive attitude will be your saving grace!!
One other thing: As some of you know, I'm a professional crutch user (you acquire that status after being on them for over a year) and it’s not any fun using crutches on snow and ice. I searched long and hard for a remedy last winter and I found the answer at Walkeasy.com. They make a studded tip for your crutches and they grip just like you're on dry pavement. I found them to be very useful.
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Everyday We're Getting Better
LOL!!! Maybe it would shock me into moving faster!!! hahahaha!!!
Spiral fracture of the tib & fib...recovery in progress...
. I have tried to do some research on my own, on the internet but not much comes up. I found this page talking about bone spurs which could result in some of the stuff ive had but it doesn't explain others (ie.the bumps on ym tibia seem to be growing). When the holidays are over I plan to visist my school nurse. Mayeb she will have some ideas of what I should do.What you say about telling my mum is also true...I should. I have expressed to her that my leg has been hurting more over the past weeks and she seems concerned but I always dismiss it...im afraid of going to a docter and possibly finding out that there is something very wrong/I need more surgery. As for talking to other relatives i cant. My parents are split up and we are immagreants-all other family is an ocean apart. I dont want to worry her. When i tell her about how bad the pain gets she gets really upset. When I had surgery this past September and woke up in recovery i couldnt even think because of how bad the pain was. I only remember something of me between moaning and screaming untill the nurse gave me something that knocked me out. When my mum heard about this (she wasn't in recovery with me at the time) she looked terrified. I dont want to put her through having to see something like that. It is hard to keep smiling when this problem has gone on for so long. This chat will deffinitly help...it is incouraging hearing how other people improving. However, i feel somewhat bad
for writing in this chat. It sounds like most people here are suffering from a broken leg. I am dealing with the effects it has had on me, not the actual broken bone itslef. I hope it is ok that is still use this chat though since what I am going through is connected to a broken leg. I also feel bad because evryone here is either on crutches or has some disability with there leg (hope you all get well soon!) and i am able to walk/somewhat run. Well, I can do the walking ok for sometime- the mall is hard because i can only walk around for 20-30 minutes or so before the pain gets to bad-stairs hurt alot at times, but running sets it off almost immediatly and puts me down for days. (bad because i still need a gym credit to grduate). Its very interesting because somedays I have no pain at all and then others times really bad. Or, when I am just sitting somewere it will randomly flare up. I am happy to hear you had a good Christmas. Enjoy watching Sex and the City. Also, congrtultions on being able to stand in the shower. It was months before I was able to do that! When i first broke my right leg I had also broken my left ankle and cracked my breast bone
...Well, i guess i have gone on another rant. I should get going. Get well soon and thanks again for the advice! BTW I a 16 and live in Ontario.