Monday, June 10, 2013

Muscular Atrophy




Muscular Atrophy


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I am now in my 5th week of recovery from Lisfranc surgery and have noticed a large amount of muscular atrophy in my right calf and thigh.  It is hard to believe that not using my right leg for 4 weeks has already made me lose over 1 1/2 inches in muscle.
On the positive side, my leg jerks (where my leg jumps automatically like it has been electrocuted) has died down.  All I am left with now is big toe throbbing and mid foot pain.  I am still not taking any OTC’s (extra strength tylenol) and find the pain to be more annoying than anything else
I am looking forward to my 5 week post op appointment on Thursday and am hoping for good news.  

5 comments:

  1. Just curious how your recovery is going? I am 1 week post op. Scared to death that I will not be able to return to work before I lose my job. Your surgery is more current than all the ones I have been reading about, and hope that there has been progress in treatments that allow for a quicker recovery..

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    1. So glad you have the worst week behind you! I can honestly say week one was a haze of exhaustion, narcotics, pain and a revolving door of friends and family. The second week the reality of the long recovery set in. Are you having a 2 week post op appointment where your cast/splint will be removed? At my 2 week post op, my stitches were ready to come out and I was sent home with a removable boot which made life a lot easier. I am lucky that I am not working. But as I gave your situation some thought, I think that, depending on what kind of work you do, you should be fairly mobile if you use a knee scooter to get around the office. Is it your right or left foot? If it is your left foot, you should be able to drive as soon as you are not taking narcotics anymore (unfortunately my fracture is on my right foot.). Just know that each week, more and more of your energy will return. I honestly think I would have been fine going to work at the beginning of week 3 and possibly before if I had to. Just make sure you have a way to elevate and ice as because that helps tremendously with the pain. How did you injure your foot?

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    2. I forgot to add that my surgeon promised I would be wearing cute shoes by September, and riding a bike by August. At my 2 week post op appointment, my surgeon gave me permission to walk in our pool as long as the water was chest high. I haven't been able to do that yet, because of the cold weather in MN this Spring. I am hoping that my week 5 post op appointment will clear me to start partial weight bearing. Good luck!

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  2. I'm just 5 days post-op from my surgery. I was hit by a motorist on July 1 2013- went to the trauma center and was diagnose with a homolateral Lisfranc dislocation fracture. All 5 tarsal and metatarsals are affected- the X-ray showed all five bones laying in the same awkward direction- like blades of wheat look after a powerful wind shear.
    I meet with my surgeon on the 24 for my first follow up. I'm using sick time I had from my employer but am very concern about the medical expenses and long term recovery as well as my employment. I'm also frustrated by the hassles of trying to collect documentation and such for the driver's insurance company to pay what they will on my medical bills and my employer- In order to be placed on medical leave.
    I have the knee scooter and dearly love it! I was not familiar with the "cuff" unit you mention in a previous post but like you- elevation and ice really helps!
    I'm still reading on your post and hope to see a video or post where you are back to where you were physically before this injury. Thanks for posting your blogs - I'm glad I happened upon them- it's nice to know I'm not alone.

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    1. What a tragedy for you! YIKES! Your lisfranc injury sounds awful! (What a great description of your fractures!) Do you have more than one incision? I didn't have to deal with insurance issues, but I can imagine how awful that must be, especially when you are trying to cope with post op pain and recovery! So glad you are finding the knee scooter helpful. It was a life savor for me. I am thinking of returning it this week. (9 weeks post op.) Thanks so much for reaching out to me. I wish you only the best as you travel your post lisfranc surgery path. Know that each day brings you closer to a full recovery! I would be interested to hear how your first follow up appointment with your surgeon goes. I know it will be good news! Happy healing!

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