Spiral tib/fib

[spook]

i would love to see a historical accounting of all injuries suffered by skiers and snowboarders worldwide, etc. -- anything that gets recorded by patrol. little ouchies to death.

[superstator]

Revision was easy as promised - outpatient surgery first thing, home that afternoon. That night sucked, but by the next day it was much less painful. I do seem to have lost what little progress I made on ankle ROM, but it's worth it to not be pigeon toed forever.

[::: :::]

Let me know if you need any chores done to help out. If I remember correctly, I'm not too far away.

Adam

[superstator]

Thanks, that's incredibly generous. So far we're keeping things covered - thank god we don't have kids to take care of. Then again, maybe if I had older kids I could set them to work fetching me snacks and keeping me entertained.

Or not.

[superstator]

Six weeks out, still officially only touch-down weight bearing, but things are healing nicely. Almost completely off the pain pills unless it's been a real long day. Got the go ahead to get on a stationary bike as long as I go easy.

Baby steps...

[jfost]

proximal fibula still looks gnarly... did they say anything about that? Should have a nice callus on there by now, but maybe that derotation thing you had to do affected it?!?

[superstator]

Didn't come up, but he did say he really had to torque on it to get my foot moved around, so...

[Orthoski]

proximal fibula still looks gnarly... did they say anything about that? Should have a nice callus on there by now, but maybe that derotation thing you had to do affected it?!?

Hardly ever fix the fibula when nailing a tibia. Once you get the bigger tibia aligned, the fibula generally takes care of itself. The level of the fibula fracture is also right where a major nerve runs (common peroneal nerve) so it's not a place you'd want to go rooting around unless there's some overriding indication.

The times you worry about high fibular fractures is when it involves an ankle fracture or sprain, because sometimes the ankle can break on the inside (medial side) and the force travel up the thick ligament (the syndesmosis) that connects the fibula and tibia, and then exit the high fibula. When this happens, you know you have a big tear of the syndesmosis, which renders the ankle unstable and needs to be taken care of surgically (that's why docs squeeze the leg up high after someone breaks the inside of his/her ankle and always want a film of the whole bone, especially if there's a fracture on the inside of the ankle but not a corresponding one on the outside at the level of the ankle - one worries about missing the fibular fracture up high and the syndesmosis injury it represents). In your case, as long as the ankle's fine it's not generally a worry.

[Bird Blaster]

Only fix the fibula if its going to help with the reduction if the tibia - this is only more so with distal tibia fractures.

[jfost]

I agree guys on the fib (non)fixation, but that film was 6wks out and it still looks cracked through&through, that's why I was wondering if it had something to do with the derotation procedure (2nd surgery).

Looks like not much fibula healing from the initial film in post #1

[::: :::]

Didn't come up, but he did say he really had to torque on it to get my foot moved around, so...

that's painful to read

[Power_Sauce]

Glad to hear you're mending. I suffered a spiral fracture in my tibia while skiing near Baker ski area 2 years, and had to have an IM rod installed. Good news is I healed up quickly (was weight bearing in 6-8 weeks if I remember, and running 4 months later on a treadmill). Skied around 7 months later up on Heliotrope:



Those are some of the most hestitant and best turns I've ever had. Stay strong and good luck with the recovery - I'm sure you'll have a similar experience next winter!

[splat]

Feel fortunate, nonetheless. 50 years ago, you'd have likely been handed a cane and gimped for the rest of your life.
I only say that because a kid I skied back then with ended up just that way from his spiral break.

[superstator]

That's something I've thought about many times. Another time or place and I could have had a much worse outcome...

[spook]

if i had those xrays i'd have somebody put them on my next topsheet

[superstator]

PROGRESS! Doc cleared me for partial weight up to 80lbs now, single crutch/cane next week, then full weight bearing "as tolerated" the week after. That makes almost exactly 3 months on crutches. I've been shuffling around the house with a cane to get used to the idea - no pain, but my knee feels really weak, and after so long the idea of actually taking a step without the crutches is pretty intimidating. First PT appointment is next week - primary goal is just to get walking reasonably well again, then hopefully work up to some road rides and mellow mountain biking this summer if the doc will sign off.

[::: :::]

nice!
you'll be at it next winter no problem

[TBS]

Very cool Dude.

When you start walking for exercise, might I suggest the Eastbank Esplanade as a route. Many good options for viewing the fauna on warm days...

[superstator]

Well, 6 months in now. Things are healing up well - PT thinks I'm pretty ahead of schedule actually. I can walk normally, no limp even at a good pace. Still can't really run, and mountain biking is kinda iffy on anything technical. But I've been doing some short easy hikes and getting on the road bike, doing the long commute to work once or twice a week.

Hiked up the Umbrella Falls trail a week or so ago and checked out the scene of the crime:



Yup. I think I found the flattest spot on the mountain to actually crash in.

[LightRanger]

Sick dude. Glad it's working out. Long-term complications suck.

Unsolicited advice: Get the hardware out as soon as they let you.

[TBS]

Stator! - good to see you among the ambulatory.

Did you ever figure out why the binder failed to release?

[superstator]

Took it by Mtn Shop, and they said if anything it was releasing a tiny bit easier than the din markings. They said they had one other customer with a similar experience, and it just seems to be a freak accident thing - hit them just right at just the right angle and boom. The other 999,999 times everything works as designed.

[superstator]

Already mentioned it in the Mt Hood thread, but I skied for the first time post injury this Saturday! After hearing about 12-18 month recoveries I had very very low expectations, so I headed straight for the bunny hill. First couple turns felt really weird, like didn't quite have control of my right leg, but a half dozen turns later it all came back. Once I felt like I wasn't going to just blow up I headed up Cascade and did some cruising around, got a little speed up without really pushing it, just generally had a really good low key day on the snow. I still have plenty of strength and confidence to rebuild, but this is miles ahead of where I thought I'd be 9 months ago. Hell, 6 months ago I had to sit down to take a shower.

If something interesting comes up I'll update, but I wanted to put some kind of final update on this saga. I think I started it saying maybe it'd be useful to somebody someday, so if you're reading this through a haze of oxy and self pity, enjoy the drugs for a little while. Then get moving. The PT and the gym time and the follow-ups and all of it will pay off. It's hard to see the endgame when you're dealing with the post-op poop, but it'll come.

Now if it would just fucking snow.

[spook]

congrats!

[jrredho]

So, I'm semi-reviving this thread, which I found today after myself acquiring a spiral tib/fib fracture about 10 days ago (hit a buried rock in some early-season mank), and I just wanted to throw in to give a hearty congrats to superstator on his return to skiing. It gives me something to look forward to.

Also, everyone let this statement go:

Unsolicited advice: Get the hardware out as soon as they let you.

LightRanger, would you, or anyone else with some expertise, comment on why this is the case?

It'd also be nice if whoever has that insight would fill us in on exactly when this hardware removal should take place and how long the recovery from the removal surgery is typically.

Thanks to all, and once again, kick ass superstator!

cheers,
john