Friends don’t let friends get arthroscopic ligament repair surgery

[swan_tower]

So the orthopedist I’m going to right now because I’ve been having pain in the arches of my feet says that the common method of arthroscopic surgery for ligmaent repair doesn’t really work. I’m inclined to say he’s right, because of the two anterior talofibular ligaments I’ve had mended in the last decade, one is down to a shred of its former self and the other has gone AWOL entirely.

(Apparently ligaments can just . . . dissolve. Who knew.)

If I could travel back in time, forget about killing Hitler. (We all know that doesn’t work anyway.) I would go back thirty years and tell my childhood self to do ankle-strengthening exercises, and not to sit in certain ways that normal people are allowed to do but for people with ankles as loose as mine amounts to spraining them slowly and repeatedly over a period of years. Convincing an eight-year-old she needs to do daily physical therapy for the rest of her life is easier said than done, but “you’ll save yourself 2-4 ankle surgeries later on” ought to be a compelling argument: the two I’ve already had, and the two I’m crossing my fingers I can forestall.

Yeah. My ankles continue to suck, and their suckiness is now starting to cause arthritis in the arches of my feet. The good news is that the cartilege in my ankles, which is the big point of concern for my doctor, is apparently pristine; that means I don’t have to have surgery right now. We are in “wait and see” mode: I have PT to do not just short-term but in perpetuity, and I have slippers that will help stabilize my feet when I’m walking around the house, and if I’m very very good and a little bit lucky I might get to skip the part where they have to put cadaver ligaments in my ankles to replace what isn’t there anymore. Which, given the recovery for that and my tendency to form keloid scars if something sharp looks at my skin too closely, is good.

But if somebody could provide me with a time machine, eight-year-old me and I need to have a chat.

Mirrored from Swan Tower.

Comments

[sovay]

(Apparently ligaments can just . . . dissolve. Who knew.)

I didn't. Yikes.

*hugs, avoiding feet*

[yhlee]

Yai, I'm sorry to hear that you're continuing to have trouble with this. Best wishes for foot stabilization. *support support*

[landofnowhere]

*takes notes* I have chronic ankle instability myself (in fact I'm just recovering from a bad sprain), so I will keep this in mind -- good motivator to do my ankle exercises.

My sympathies, and best wishes for your ankles going forward.

[mrissa]

Yesterday my neurologist and I were commiserating about how we don't get a user manual for our particular model issued at birth, like the bits that tell you what kind of motor oil and what size of headlight bulbs to use in your particular car.

"Sure, the average recommended aerobic workout time per day is 25 minutes! but you're going to need at least 60 or you'll get a lot of colds and bronchitis! Do that, though, and you'll be fine." "Oh, sure, PEOPLE can sit like that, but YOU can't sit like that. Why not? Ankles will go on strike, possibly permanently." "Yes, I understand that almonds are a common and even healthy food for your culture, but you personally will end up with a weird persistent cough, so AVOID."

[pameladean]

Thinking good thoughts at your pristine ankle cartilage, and if I stumble over a time machine you can be first in line.

P.

[dhampyresa]

*hugs*

Hope every goes as well as possible from now on.

[starlady]

I love PT, but having to do it forever is rough. I hope you can avoid the future surgeries at least!

[lokifan]

...I have weak ankles and I'm 28, and I'm gonna ask a doctor about this and do some Googling. Thank you.

[swan_tower]

Yeah, half the reason I posted this is so I can be a warning to others.

[alfreda89]

At the risk of sounding slightly nuts...I have a collagen recipe from a friend, an acupuncturist. She got it from a surgeon via her mom. Used properly it can improve cartilage and reduce or eliminate pain, depending on your own condition. My friend told me that of her clients who tried it, 80% had improvement. It's a 90 day suggested activity, and then weekly or as you feel your body needs it.

In my case, my hands stopped hurting in 30 days. A friend who is an EMT had relief from two bulging disks in 10 days. You do need to do it correctly--it's cheap, absorbent protein if you don't add the alkaline agent, but it goes to ligaments and cartilage when kept in suspension.

Ping me if you'd like to explore it. I don't know if it can help in this case, but with surgeries not working well, it might be worth the experiment.