Orthopedics :: Broken Tibia - How Long In A Cast And Non Weight Bearing
Aug 22, 2014
I had a horse fall and have managed to fracture my left tibia in a spiral complex formation.
They decided not to operate and I have now been in a cast for 7 weeks and have another 3 weeks until my next visit to the fracture clinic
Has anyone else been in a cast this long and non weight bearing? How long until I will be able to ride again once the cast has come off?
I am getting really bored at home now because my work won't let me return until I am walking and the doctor keeps signing me off!
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I broke my tibia and fibula while playing soccer 7 weeks ago. I had an IM nail and 4 screws put into my tibia. I recently had my full leg cast removed at 6 weeks, and the doctor told me I could start partial weight bearing (25-45 lbs).
My question is, when the doctor said 25-45lbs, is that because that is the most that my bones can take? Or can my bones take my full body weight at this point? Is my doctor simply taking into account the fact that my joints and my muscles will be very atrophied (which is true)? So can I simply start bearing my full body weight as soon as my joints and muscles let me?
I also got a walking cast, but I do not enjoy using it. Do I have to use it? I can just be careful when I'm outside.
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About two weeks ago I had a nasty tangle with a rusty old swing set, and to make a long story short, the swing set kicked my butt and gave me a spiral fracture in my tibia (about halfway down my shin) and a hairline fracture through my fibula (right up near my knee.)
I've got the sucker casted and have been staying off of it, but recently had a nasty scare. I fell off my front porch (about three feet from the ground, which is solid concrete where I was sitting,) and only managed to keep from seriously hurting myself because I knocked my poor cousin over as he was walking by.
Again, I'm fine, but it got me to wondering: How likely is it that, had my cousin not been there, I could have broken my leg despite it being in a thigh-to-toe cast?
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Broke fibula and tibia Feb 17, 2016. Had surgery March 1, and had 2 screws put a n fibula and a plate on tibia. After 8 weeks in cast and NWB I am now in a boot. I am doing exercises for therapy but after walking on it for about an hour leg hurts and ankle and foot swell. Also get sharp twinges now and then in ankle area. Has anyone else had these problems and how long before you can put full weight on it and be able to work. I'm a waitress and have to be on my feet for 4 hours or longer without sitting.
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I broke my leg on the 21st September 2013, and it has now been broken for 15 weeks! I have a spiral fracture to the right tibia, and the doctors decided not to operate. I had a full leg cast for the first 8 weeks, and then went onto a half leg cast, fully weight baring! At first I could only put some of my weight through the bone, and would rely mostly on my crutches, but recently I have been able to hobble around with using no crutches at all - I only do this when i'm inside my house as I would still not rely on my bone fully to steady me. But in the last week or so, it has started to ache more, and it had completely stopped hurting before I am scared that I have put to much weight through it and damaged it again! The pain isn't that bad, it comes and goes and i only take paracetamol to make the ache go away, but it really is worrying me! I don't yet know when my cast is due off as apparently the doctors said my bone will take 4 to 4 and a half months to heal, but by my x rays he said it could be a little earlier! I am a 19 year old girl at university, doing a practical drama degree, so as you can imagine this has been a nightmare for me & I was so hoping I was nearing the end! It seems ever lasting! I'm just wondering if this pain that i'm experiencing now is normal, or if i have possibly done something to damage the break again! I am just panicking because i so want this to be over now i've come 15 weeks and i don't want to go back to square 1
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Dec 2012 I broke my fibula in 1 place, my tibia in 2 and shattered my ankle.
I have had 2 surgeries and currently have one 10 inch plate, one 12 inch plate and 19 screws in my leg.
I realize I am only 9 months into recovery. My surgeon and pain management dr both have said the typical recovery is 18months to 2years or longer.
My question is this.. can the screws become infected or have issue at this point in recovery? While the majority of the pain is obviously deep bone pain, I have no feeling on half my leg and the other side the nerves go crazy and fire at random times.
However the last month I am feeling this weird pressure high up on the tibia plate where 4 screws are located. It is definitely warmer than the rest of the area and a small swollen area.
I still have major issues walking and stretching, but the last few weeks the largest area of discomfort (besides the ankle which is always there) is high up on the tibia where I mentioned.
I saw my surgeon two days ago and he said x rays did not show any issue with hardware and it is probably just my bone and muscle getting used to walking again.
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On April 30th of this year I broke my Fibula & Tibia in a work related accident. They had me in a External Fixture for four months which meant I had to hop around on one leg using a walker (My youngest likes to run around so I refrained from using crutches)
Now over time three of my toes (the middle ones) were starting to curl down, which I suspected was due to gravity just messing with me, but now I've been able to just have my foot on the ground for a while and to no success they remain curled.
Now when my foot is non weight bearing I can stretch my toes (By hand) just fine without it giving me too much trouble except for the fact it will slowly go back to position.
When the foot is planted on the ground the toes are way harder to straighten... Anyone have an idea what's going on.. The doc keeps telling me it will be fine and my therapist says it's something she's never seen before and can't really explain it.
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My sister had a broken tibia and needed surgery including pins, and added bone marrow. She says she is crying all the time. Can this type of surgery cause crying all the time?
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After being NWB for 7 weeks, I've struggled with the PWB phase in that I am moving through it very slowly. I'm 5 weeks into it since my cast was removed and only recently mastered using a walker. It took me forever to get me off the knee scooter and on 2 feet. Last week I thought I was ready to move to using a walking cane and over the weekend used it a little bit while out. I am now in excruciating pain. I haven't really struggled with horrible pain thus far so I am a little concerned. I realize moving from a walker to a cane is increasing the amount of weight on my foot, so is that probably why I am in so much pain? I am now back to using the walker and feeling a bit discouraged that I couldn't handle the cane. I am further discouraged that I am moving so slowly through the PWB phase. Many talk on these boards of it taking only a couple of weeks before they are fully weight bearing, but I am in week 5 and I don't see being close to that yet. Any words of "your experience isn't so abnormal" would be helpful.
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I have broken my tibia just above the ankle I have had a steel rod inserted through the bone and it has been two weeks since the operation and doctor has told me I can start walking with crutches. Still unsure how much weight I can put on it and what to do to help it heal?
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After surviving the longest MN winter ever, and being extra-careful out on the ice, I tripped on my stairs INSIDE last Thursday. My initial concern was my throbbing left shin, but the right foot ultimately won out, sending me to my GP on Friday morning. X-rays were performed and the fracture was discovered. I was placed into a moon boot, warned that surgery "might" be necessary due to the location of the fracture, and sent home sans crutches, knee walker, or anything else, to await my consult with the orthopod on Monday.
During the vast expanse of free time I had, I rediscovered this site and many others, and also emailed my cousin who is a physician, and managed to get myself totally confused as to the best course of action concerning the healing process.
Long story short, orthopod said fairly clean (though spiral) fracture, very minimal displacement, and recommended no surgery, NWB for two weeks, and a follow-up x-ray on the 17th to see if any bone 'tackiness' is evident (judging from what I have read, this seems highly unlikely).
My concern now is that practically ever since the fall, I have had little to no pain in my foot while bearing weight on the moon boot. My MD cousin said, as did some posters here, that weight bearing stimulates healing and bone growth. So... not to second-guess my ortho, but I am wondering whether I am doing myself and my foot a disservice by NOT putting weight on it. It seems to be getting stiffer and sorer (when I gingerly test my weight on it on occasion) ever since I have started using the crutches and the knee walker. Am I doing the right thing? Is the ortho being too cautious and conservative, or am I being too impatient and skeptical?
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Ok so Iv damaged my leg somehow a few days ago whilst out drinking and at first I thought it was going to be fine, there was no bruise it just stung to touch as if I was being stabbed with a pin. I rested the next day as it bothered me to walk on it, I limp when walking, its the third day now and it still feels like im being stabbed with even the softest touch and still no bruise .....
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I am 6 days out from microfracture surgery on my left talus to correct an OCD that is actually 25 years old. Back when I was 13 I was diagnosed and went the route of NWB for about 12 weeks rather than surgery. Although I always had a less than fantastic ankle and some arthritis through the years, it was not until this summer that I went back to an OS due to shooting pain and locking in the ankle. The same lesion showed up on MRI/CT, about 1.1 cm x .6 cm still partially attached but with fluid gathering beneath it. OS assumed it was flapping, thus pain some days, no pain other days. I decided to go ahead with debridement and drilling, and so far seems like it went smoothly. The OS said that the piece was indeed very loose but that actually meant that it was easy to remove and they cleaned out the bone and drilled. So far I'm actually surprised that I haven't been in too much pain, I barely took the Percocet and stopped completely just 2 days later. Now I am trying to flex the ankle as much as I can (in a hard splint/wrap that OS does not want me to remove until follow-up on Monday) and it's not too bad. I do have 2 concerns I was hoping OCD veterans could answer:
1. My OS, who is actually the second surgeon I saw about this and chose to go with him because of his experience, believes in early weight bearing after this type of surgery. I've been reading/lurking a lot of threads on here about OCD surgery recovery and haven't come across anyone who did this. I see him on Monday, which will be 12 days post-op, and he plans to put me in a boot with a small amt of weight bearing at that time. Anyone else do this? He even says that in the meantime, I can put the foot flat on the floor and stand with a small bit of weight on it, as long as I don't walk. As in, if I'm standing brushing my teeth, put the foot flat on the floor, and that this hard half-cast should loosen up as I continue to do this. I'm scared to try it! I suspect THAT is when I'll really feel pain.
2. Until yesterday I didn't feel my incisions at all. Now I'm getting a sort of zing pain in one spot that I think it where he said an incision would be. It's sort of stinging. Is this normal? I can't remove the dressing so I have no idea what it looks like under there. Is it possible I popped a stitch? How long are the incisions? They should only be a stitch or 2 long, correct?
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My 50 husband broke the tibia in his right ankle over 10 weeks ago and wore the boot for 6 weeks. Now being almost 3 weeks since taking the boot off and he is in alot of pain and severe swelling. Why is his ankle still swollen and him continue to be in severe pain? Is there anything we can do to help him?
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I broke my fib and tib on January 22nd, nearly 23 weeks ago. The fracture was treated conservatively, in a long leg cast for 6 weeks. After 1 week, x rays showed angulation, and wedges were applied in the cast. This seemed to be successful, as there is no evidence of malunion. After 6 weeks, a sarmiento cast was applied and 50% weight bearing initiated. At 12 weeks, x rays showed healing was being slow and after a further 4 weeks in a second sarmiento cast, at 16 weeks, although there had been some growth, it was deemed necessary to have a further 4 weeks in a Miami cast. At 20 weeks, the registrar was of the opinion that healing was still no adequate, and a CT scan is being arranged. Options suggested if there is evidence of delayed healing, are: bone stimulator or bone graft.
There is no pain on standing although there are some occasional twinges over the fracture when walking. Weight bearing has now been increased on advice, to 70%. I always use a walker.
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I broke my tibia a week ago. I had a cast put on three days ago. I did not need surgery. I know that there is going to be swelling. I have been staying off of it and when I do get up I use crutches. Within five minutes of me being up my foot and toes swell very. bad and toes become cold and numb. Is this normal? My other concern is that my ankle actually feels better when it is slightly swollen. When should I worry about the swelling in my foot?
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I have a spiral fracture of the Tibia. It has been fixed with a plate however the surgeon left a gap in the bones. (This gap was not present in the original x-ray prior to surgery). After 12 weeks there is no sign of the bone healing. I sort a 2nd opinion & was advised that the bone is unlikely to heal because of the gap & further surgery was recommended to join up the gap & possible a bone graft.
What is the conventional thinking on this? Should bones be fixed touching to heal?
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Why did my doctor not put a cast on my leg..he gave me a walker and a knee brace and told me not to put pressure on my right leg because the bone May split and then I would have to have surgery...seems like he would put a cast on my leg to make sure it doesn't move the bone.
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I broken my tibia in my ankle 5 days ago! It is a small clean break! It hardly hurt at all, didn't cry until they said it was broken! No exciting story i was running up the stairs and went over on my right ankle on the landing!
I hardly had any swelling as I put ice on it straight away and went to a+e straight away. They put me in a temp cast. I found this very uncomfortable and went straight back in the morning as they said the break was very small and in a 'good place'. They said I could have a air boot.
I am due to go to the fracture clinic in just under two weeks! To check the progress!
My biggest problem is that I am going away in just 3 weeks and really not wanting to wear the airboot whilst I'm away! Could anyone advise me if this would possible!
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I faced an accident one month ago and broken my tibia and fibula of right leg... i was operated with a rod surgery.. a rod and 3 nails were placed.. please tell how much time it will take to recover... and after how much time i should go for a xray...
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I'm a 22 year old male. On March 18, I broke both Tibia/Fibula bones in my right leg while playing basketball. The fracture was diagnosed as a displaced oblique fracture of the tibial shaft. The break is located fairly close to the middle of the bone, maybe just a little closer to the ankle. I had surgery on March 25, where an IM rod was placed in with two pins each above and below the break. Three weeks after surgery, the orthopedic surgeon told me it was okay to bear partial weight on my leg using crutches. It is May 5 (6 weeks post-op), and I have been walking around using my injured leg with the assist of crutches for the past two weeks. I have also been loosening my knee/ankle, and using foam rollers to loosen up muscles in the injured leg. I have no serious pain, just small amounts of swelling throughout the day. I was just wondering if weight-bearing on the injured leg is okay considering it is an oblique fracture. Is it normal to put weight on a fracture so early after post-op? Also, when do most people who experience a fractured tibial shaft begin to start driving again?
Thank you for any advice and help in advance.
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