How to Recover From a Broken Ankle That Has Plates and Screws

You are trying to heal after a surgery to fix a severely broken ankle and looking for the steps to get you through the first few weeks. While I AM NOT A DOCTOR I do have personal insight from my injury that may help you.

UPDATE: I was pretty traumatized when I wrote this first eHow years ago. It isn't as detailed as I would have liked, but I was hurt at the time. Please feel to comment, as many have, about what you are going through and we all can support each other as well. If you have been through this procedure feel free to add steps or insight you experienced during this procedure.

Difficulty: Moderately Challenging

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Time
• A good doctor
• A loving family
• A supportive work environment

1. 
    

   Keep your body fit, eat healthy. If you do not eat healthy your body will take longer to heal. Do not take pain medication if you can avoid it as most pain medication prolongs healing.

2. Be punctual with your appointments to the doctor, be sure to tell him of fever, sickness, or any unusual symptoms like burning or severe pain.

3. 
    

   After you go to have the cast removed ask your doctor to give you a referral to a respected physical therapist. You will see massive bruising, and horrible dry skin, it will eventually all peel off. You will also notice your hair is discolored, excessive, or missing.

4. If you go to all your physical therapist appointments it will improve your progress. You do not want a limp for the rest of your life do you? Do not push yourself if you see any oozing or blood from surgical incisions, if you do see a therapist be sure to have "break" days to give your body a chance to rest.

5. Your healing will take about 6 months to get back to a comfortable walking ability. You will consider soon if you would like to have hardware removed from your ankles, if you do you could improve your future use of the leg, but also risk re injuring the leg.

6. If you have time thank all the people that helped you get through this, and give something back to those that helped you through this time in your life.

Tips & Warnings

• Ice helps swelling and pain.
• If you are wearing a cast keep it dry, if it gets wet and you have sutures, you could be up for an infection, possibly even loose your leg.
• If you have antibiotics prescribed, take them all skipping these could cause you to loose your foot.
• If you have anti inflammatory medication use them only as prescribed (as with all medications)
• As always follow ALL doctors advice
• If you are instructed to do something by your doctor do it as they expect on time.
• NEVER take medication earlier or later then prescribed, it could have unknown side effects and be a danger to your life.
• ALWAYS follow your doctors advice, and get permission before changing your life style in anyway as described here.

[msinchi]

on 11/17/2009 ON OCT 13,2009 MY HUSBAND HAD SURGERY. HE HAD TO GET SCREWS INPLANTED BECAUSE HE BROKE HIS ANKLE IN 2 DIFFERENT PLACES. HE IS HAVING FROM TIME TO TIME BAD PAINS. I WOULD LIKE TO KNOW WHAT TO EXPECT WHEN HIS CAST COMES OFF AND HOW WILL HIS RECOVERY BE LIKE

[nanomatrix]

on 11/16/2009 this truncated my post... essentially at the end I reiterated I am not a doctor and you should instead seek medical advice to make sure its not a bone spur or a stressed joint. I only had ankle problems your problems might be more complicated or different. Also you should consider an MRI, if thats an option.

[nanomatrix]

on 11/16/2009 Not a doctor, but there are a few things to consider. For example age, if you are older or are prone to arthritis you will find that becomes an problem after breaks. Eventually if you break your bones you will very likely get arthritis. There may also be nerve damage. In general pain only comes from nerves. So they are damaged, being pressed on, not healed or arthritic. That would be my guess. Your body adjusts to pain medications, after you take a particular medication for awhile it looses its effects. Tylenol doesnt treat the symptoms of pain, but does effect your perception of pain and for many it is helpful to cope with pain. (Granted Tylenol extra strength is not like the stuff they give you in the hospital which typically has codine in it.) If the pain is not caused by a secondary problem and is just perceptual, you might be able to stretch and work out more to get past the pai...

[mrsv1961]

on 11/16/2009 I broke my ankle and leg in 3 places in June 2009. I was hospitalized for one week. I have a plate and 7 screws.It got infected and I was in the hospital for another week. It is November 2009 and I am in a lot of pain. All the pain had left and then all of a sudden it returned. I went to doctor to have it x-rayed. Doctor says everything is in place and that I would be feeling pain for at least a year, especially when it rains. I have soaked my foot in Epsom Salt and take so many Advil, that I think my system is immuned to the Advil. What could this be? All the hardware is still in place. He said that sometimes it would hurt around the hardware, to expect pain for a little while longer.

[nanomatrix]

on 8/27/2009 At first it will seem like the injury (the wound) is the biggest limiting factor. Eventually you will forget it is in there, but will be bothered from time to time when you bump it or when the weather is bad. Some times it will just ache. You will likely loose some dorsel flection (bending it will be hard) on the foot if the injury is similar to mine. Its been several years since my injury and I have had half the hardware removed (the plates and screws holding the plate) and its 90 percent better. The holes I can feel the the hardware on the other side they wont remove still bother me. Don't overwork yourself with the hardware as it often irritated the tissue around it for me.