1 month post-op Achilles Tendon Repair Surgery

by Pam
(Clearwater, FL)

I'm a 55 yr. old female, was doing well and walking 3-5 miles a day before this Achilles tendon injury.


I have suffered with pain in my left Achilles tendon for about 2 years. I went to 3 orthopedic doctors before one actually ordered the MRI which showed the tear.

Previously I had worn a "boot" for almost a year and had PT. The pain/swelling only got worse over the course of time, mobility was very limited. I had surgery on 1-6-11 and am currently recovering.

Surgery included left heel debridement of the bursa, excision of bone, partial ostectomy, and tendon repair. It was outpatient surgery.

I came home with an Accufuser (which is like an IV Drip going into affected leg, just above the knee posteriorly).

I had this for 5 days. I think it really worked to control pain.The pain was definitely off the charts the first 24 hrs. until everything kicked it.

I did spend those first 5 days mostly in bed with foot elevated. I was off pain meds after 10 days.

I was in a soft cast the first 2 wks. now in a hard cast until 2-22-11. The doctor instructed me to not put any weight on it. I don't think I could anyway at this point(4wks post-op)

My hardest problem has been how to move around my house. I can't use crutches due to RA. Wheelchair on carpet is difficult. I'm lucky to have a husband that took off work the first 3 wks. as now I'm just counting down to get this cast off and start PT.

Then I will go back to the "boot". Hopefully, will be mobile again.



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Joshua Answers:


Hi Pam.

Wow, that sounds horrible. Was the tear right on the heel attachment?

Yikes.

Did you have Achilles Tendonitis symptoms before 2 years ago? Or did all of a sudden you had injury and pain? Sounds like the latter.


4 weeks later and still no improvement...sounds about right. Being in the cast doesn't help much as you can't get at it to help it heal.

As SOON as it gets off, start Ice Dipping as described on the How To Reduce Inflammation page. That's going to be your best friend as you recover, throughout the PT included.

Also, Magnesium for Tendonitis to help muscles loosen, and natural anti-inflammatories like turmeric and Omega 3 fats.

You didn't include your email, I hope you find this response.

Good luck, and let us know how you progress.




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Joshua Tucker, B.A., C.M.T.
The Tendonitis Expert
www.TendonitisExpert.com
















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Apr 02, 2014
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starstarstarstarstar 		bursitis, small tear in achilles. 4 weeks surgery post op
by: Heather

Hello,
My name is Heather. I'm 38 years old. I was having Achilles pain for almost a year. I had tried all the stretching, physical therapy, anti-inflamatories, ect. The pain would not go away and got so bad I could barely walk anymore. I had severe bursitis which caused a small tear in my Achilles.

I work on my feet on the concrete all day and I just couldn't take it anymore. I opted for surgery. I feel very confident in my Dr. who was also a physical therapist. I woke up from the surgery in a great deal of pain. This for me is not surprising, I do not deal with pain well.

They emptied the medicine cabinet on me and I felt better. I took pain meds for about 2 days and then I was over the pain. My Dr. prescribed a roll about walker which has been great because I do not do very well on crutches. I can go pretty much any where that is handicap accessible. I have to have someone drive though because I can't drive (right foot).

I just had my cast removed and I'm now in the boot. My Dr. does not want me walking for another week because of the severity of my tendon. The bursa was the size of a golf ball and my tendon was in bad shape. So far its healing very nicely.

There is not much swelling and I'm able to take my foot out and stretch the tendon pretty good, even though its still a little tight.

I guess next week he'll start me walking and i'll probably start PT. The hardest part for me is the time...I can't stand sitting around, I miss my job and my kids are driving me crazy! I advise waiting until the kids are in school to have surgery. However, I could not wait that long..the pain was to bad!

I'm scared to death that I will have to do this again. My left foot is starting to bother me because it's been taking all the weight. I hope to God that it gets better once I get walking. I don't know if I can go through being cooped up and sitting around for another month. It's extremely depressing.

I’ll update more later. Feel free to ask any questions and give me any suggestions you think would help me. Thanks! oh p.s., I did not have stitches or staples…I don't think? I just had two stitches. one at the top and one at the bottom of the incision and the rest was taped together to prevent scaring. The incision was much longer than I expected. That's all I can think of right now.


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Joshua Comments:

Hello Heather.

1. How are things doing now?

2. My suggestions are in various places on the site (Q&A pages, start with the Achilles Tendonitis page and read the links off of there, etc. Magnesium, other nutrition, getting inflammation etc out with ice dipping, self care massage. And the Reversing Achilles Tendonitis ebook is good for pre and post Achilles tendon surgery.

Bursa get big and inflamed because too tight muscles compress the tendon down on to the bursa, so constant grinding and irritation.

3. What does ‘the tendon was in bad shape’ mean, exactly?

4. What exactly was done during the surgery?

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