A Tibial Plateau fracture is really not much fun, but it helps if you are prepared and in many cases doctors will not prepare you properly for daily life after your injury. If I had to give you only one piece of Advice on Tibial Plateau eracture recovery it would be: be patient. And in the end, it’s not as bad as it looks.
Below is a more elaborate list of time-tested knowledge and information on different subjects related to your Tibial Plateau fracture. There are also separate sections for the different stages of recovery (from the menu above choose “1-8 weeks” etc.)
*Note: this website is not intended to provide medical advice. Your doctor is a much better source for medical advice. This information is based on firsh-hand personal experience and research*
What to expect – overview
You will be leaving the hospital on crutches, usually with a hinged brace. For the first few weeks you will experience quite a few different uncomfortable symptoms but these all pass quickly. Natural symptoms include limited range of motion in your leg (in the knee and ankle joints) as well as pain, heat flashes, edema and stiffness Some of these will be caused by the fact that you are not completely mobile. Things will progress from here until in the end you are (in most cases) completely able to do your everyday activities, but it will take some time and hard work.
Time to recovery
Recovery from a Tibial Plateau fracture is different from person to person. It depends very much on the exact type and specifics of injury, your age, prior issues, level of physical activity, physiotherapy, nutrition and many other factors. Given all of these differences it is still quite safe to say that for most people, if you the injury was treated by surgery, you will still be in some kind of recovery for a complete year after your injury¹. In most cases it will be more than that, Improvement showing up to three years after. This sounds like a lot, and it is, but I can assure you that it does get better and that for most people after a few months your the injury will not prevent you from continuing with you daily life and you will be able to do all your daily activities to some extent including walking short distances, going out, meeting with friends, going to work etc.
Weight Bearing
For a period of about 6-8 weeks after the surgery you will be NWB (non-wait-baring), this means that you can not put any pressure on your knee and leg and will need to use a wheelchair, crutches or both. For some injuries it might take up to 12 weeks until allowed FWB(Full weight bearing). Depending on your doctor and your specific health condition you will be moving from NWB to PWB (Partial Weight bearing) or FWBAT (Full weight bearing as tolerated). This period of NWB will cause many mobility concerns and will affect your daily routine.
Mobility
You will be spending a few days in a hospital bed then progressing to a wheel chair and crutches, which you will be using for about 2 months, possibly followed by a single crutch and walking stick (see paragraph above – “weight bearing”). It could be up to 3 months on crutches, and up to 6 still using a walking stick (but usually much less). Also expect that initially you won’t be able to bend your knee much for a few weeks. This is called limited ROM (range-of-motion). Crutches are hard to use at first, and may be painful on the hands and shoulder, but don’t worry you will get used to them very quickly. And as a bonus you will develop very strong arm muscles. In some cases, overuse and pressure on your hands can cause secondary injuries to your wrists, arms or shoulders. If you are in pain from using crutches take it easy and use a wheelchair for a short while. You should also consider testing different types of crutches. Forearm crutches are usually more comfortable (then underarm) and come in ergonomic varieties. Today many advanced crutches also support ergonomic designs, anti-slip, and special features (link, link). Underarm crutches are usually safer then regular forearm crutches (link), but tend to be less comfortable, and don’t come with as many smart designs. Platform crutches might be good for people with a poor grip, but I haven’t tried them myself. Some crutches will also have shock absorbers to help your wrists and arms absorb shock (link).
All this will require that you prepare for a period of partial mobility. Things you might be limited in doing include – walking up and down stairs, house jobs (cleaning, cooking, washing), carrying things from place to place (no free hands when using crutches), reaching high and low cabinets, showering. At first, you might also have trouble getting dressed and undressed but this will pass quickly. The best way to deal with this is have friends, partners & family help you with everyday chores and prepare the house as much as possible to make things easier. A few things you could do are:
- Get a shower chair so that you are able to shower without bearing weight (link) and possibly also invest in some big bags or drycast or other cast covers (link) so that you can shower without taking your brace or cast off during the first few weeks.
- Be very careful when using crutches in a wet surface because you could easily slip. Even more dangerous is if the crutches are wet and the floor is not. Make sure to dry the bottom of your crutches on a towel before leaving the shower.
- If your crutches are very old and the tips are cracked, replace the tips with new rubber tips. The come very cheaply (link)
- Use a gripper (link) to be able to reach those unreachable cabinets and to be able to grasp and retrieve items you would not be able to otherwise while on a wheel chair (link).
- Make sure that someone prepares food and goes shopping for you. Other options include ordering in prepared food and ordering groceries online.
- If your bed is on the second floor, Consider sleeping in a different room if you find it hard to get up the stairs. You can also climb stairs with crutches, or sitting down.
- High and low cabinets are are hard to reach. Try moving things around so that they are easier to reach. Doors on low cabinets can also be unhinged to allow for easier access with a wheel chair. They can easily be put back on later.
- More useful ideas can be found in the “logistics” section and “Tips & Tricks“
Physiotherapy
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Physiotherapy is going to be a regular part of your life. The are several goals: increase ROM, increase muscle-mass, teach your musculoskeletal system to operate as before and increase your stability. It is very very important that you start physiotherapy as early as possible and keep at it until you are completely better. This is the one factor that will affect your recovery more then any other and it is completely up to you. I’ve written a complete section on physiotherapy alone. Usually you will be given exercises to perform from your physiotherapist. At the very beginning you will probably not be able to bend or straighten your knee at all. This can be quite frightening but don’t be alarmed. Initially exercises will aim to teach your neurological system to control the leg again. It might even only be hours before you will start to be able to bend your leg, or it could be a few days. After this, during the NWB (not in all cases) period you will be performing gentle exercises to enhance your ROM, strengthen your muscles and reduce stiffness, sometimes using stretch bands(link). Exercises might be done at home or in a medical center. It is very important that during this stage you follow PT instructions and do the exercises as soon as possible and as much as possible. This will reduce stiffness, boost recovery and give you a better chance at developing good ROM. When you progress to WB, physiotherapy will include many exercises with weights and machinery with the aim of gaining stability and muscle and to exercise everyday activities like walking. I can not emphasize enough how important it is that you keep at it (even if it means you go to work less). To be able to do physiotherapy at home you can consider purchasing light ankle weights(link). For more info and tips, have a look at the physiotherapy section.
Medical professional
Several medical professionals will be involved in your recovery process, including the radiologists, the OS (“operating surgeon”), Physiotherapist and sometimes others. You will be having regular checkups with them. It is very important that you make sure your OS is a good one, and that you consult with him on every question you have. Be curious and ask everything you want to know. Sometimes doctors will not be generous with information, make sure that you get your answers. You deserve them. Seek extra information in sites like this one (more sites in the further reading section). In many cases the PT and the OS will be discussing your condition either directly or passing notes through you. Make sure that they talk if they are not already talking, but remember that when they give contradicting advice – the opinion of the OS is always the one to go by. You might also want to consider getting a second opinion both before or after your surgery.
Diet
Bone healing requires quite a lot of nutritional help, especially during the first 3 months(This is when the bone is healing), so make sure to eat well, and consider supplementation. For your healing to progress well you need to make sure that you get a lot of Calories, Protein, Antioxidants and minerals. During the first few weeks of healing your body will consume about 2-3(!) times as many calories as normal. This is about 6000 calories per day, so no need to feel bad if you’re eating a lot and very hungry. It’s all going to healing.
Protein is an Important nutritional ingredient. By volume, roughly half of your bone is comprised of protein, and you will also need to get a lot of it to reduce muscle atrophy as much as possible. If you think you are not getting enough protein consider using protein powder to supplement your daily protein intake (link), or adding protein rich food to your diet (meat, eggs, milk products, nuts & seeds).
Minerals are very important for several reasons. By weight bone is about 70% minerals. These are the building blocks of your bones. The high need for minerals will mean you might no be getting enough of them, which can cause other problems. If you are depleted in magnesium for example this may cause muscle cramps which are not much fun during a Tibial Plateau fracture. Consider using a multi-vitamin(link) containing minerals during the recovery process just to be sure. Studies have shown a lower rate of complications in healing in people taking multi-vitamins (link). The most important minerals to consume are Zinc, Copper, Calcium and Silicon.
Vitamins are the catalysts for the process of healing and are also in high need during recovery. Vitamins that play an important role in bone healing include: Vitamin C, Vitamin K, the Vitamin B-series. Be sure to eat a varied diet and Consider using a multi-vitamin for Vitamins and minerals (link).
Anti-Infalmmatory Nutrients help reduce inflammation and pain. Bone creates a lot of inflammation which causes pain. Unfortunately it is not advisable to take NSAID (Non Steroidal anti-inflammatory Drugs) during the bone recovery process as these slow recovery. Natural Anti inflammatory agents that may work to reduce pain include Vitmain C, Omega-3 (link) and others.
There are many foods you should avoid. Some foods will interrupt normal absorption of nutrients and their consumption should be limited. Some of these are:
- Salt or foods prepared with lots of salt
- More than one cup of coffee or other caffeine beverages. If possible, avoid coffee altogether.
- Sugar
- Chocolate (because to caffeine content)
- Soft drinks and carbonated beverages
- Alcohol (it inhibits calcium absorption)
- Caffeine (it increases rate of calcium loss and inhibits absorption)
Pain
Pain is an unpleasant but normal part of recovery. You will be experiencing different types of pain and discomfort throughout your recovery. Pain might be felt in different parts of the leg, and won’t neccesarily concentrate only around the knee. Most pain comes during the first few days and weeks after the surgery. Pain management is an important part of your recovery and you should not be in constant pain. You should use pain medication as advised by your OS or hospital medical staff. If you are unable to use the medication prescribed by your doctor or are more comfortable using a different type of pain medication remember that some types of painkillers should not be taken for long periods of time(read the label!), and that you should never take NSAID as pain-killer while the bone is still healing. These types of medications will postpone healing. Brands included in the NSAID group which you should not use include Aspirin, Motrin, Ibufen, diclofenac, naproxen and others. Don’t use these. Instead use what is recommended by your medical staff or another medication that is not a NSAID. In some case, mostly in the first days you might experience more severe pain that can be treated with stronger drugs. This is normal, but if you experience abnormally strong pain or other abnormal symptoms, get yourself evacuated to a medical center as this is usually nothing but could be a sign of a complication. Make that in the first few weeks you have a bottle or box of painkillers in your pocket so that it’s always handy. Remember – liquid pain medication usually act faster then the tablet equivalent of the same brand.
Staying at home/Mental Health
You might be staying at home a lot and will be quite immobile for a while. This can get affect your mood very much and can at some point get depressing, especially if you are used to being very active. There is no magic pill for this, choose a good book, and a good TV series and try to regularly talk to as many friends, family and close people as possible. The proximity of friends and close ones is very important. You might also want to find a community of people who have suffered from Tibial Plateau fracture before who share your experiences and feelings. There are several such communities, and some of them they can be in the further reading section of this website. Also, try to do as much exercise as you possibly can. Even if this means exercising while sitting or lying down. This can give real boost to your mood. Another good Idea is to start watching a new TV-show you’ve never had time to watch, or subscribe to online video providers like netflix or amazon prime (link). If in need, consult a psychologist or mental health professional. It is quite normal to be affected by a prolonged period of immobility and recovery, and a psychologist will be able to help with this.
Physical Activity
You will eventually probably be able to do anything you were able to do before your injury. However, this might take a long time (1 or more year for some sports) and you might have to be careful when doing extreme sports. There is a limited amount of things that you may not be able to do exactly as before, for example some yoga postures will not be possible with limited ROM, but you can always work around these limitations by doing things slightly differently. Also, you might experience some pain which will be limiting. If you want to take up a fitness activity shortly after the injury bicycling and swimming are both good options which will also help with recovery. Upper body weight training might also be a good option but will not directly advance your recovery.
Work
You Might be dying to get back to work or could be in need for a vacation. Going back to work is something that very much depends on you and on your specific job and state of mind. Some people go back to work on crutches after 4 weeks (me, for example), while others might wait a whole 6 months. There is a good side to going back to work (aside from money) since you will be interacting with people all day long and will not be bored. The important thing to remember is that you must avoid overworking and stressing yourself out. When you go to work it is important that you leave enough time and mental energy to be able to do your physiotherapy as much as you need, to rest, to relax and to visit your medical professional. This will allow your body to recover. You might be tempted to sacrifice your physio for your career. Don’t do that. Your career will still be there when you recover, the condition of your leg is something you will be living with forever.
Sex
There is no physical limitation from having sex as soon as the initial pain has subsided, but this injury can affect your sex life, something which you will not find a lot of information about and your doctor might not tell you. Decreased mobility in one leg and one leg which is half the strength of the other can naturally affect sex. This gets better as your leg heals and strengthens, and you will need to ask your partner to be patient as you progress through the recovery process.
On a good note
Tibial plateau Recovery takes a long time but at the end of the process you are looking at excellent recovery and usually a fully functional life. Moreover, trying to find the good embedded in the bad, this injury can help you put things in perspective and appreciate all the things you have in life: friends, family, health, a loving spouse. It gives you an opportunity to stop and think about what matters most.
I like you had my injury skiing on Feb. 10th. I am having difficulty with getting the leg straight. I am improving….when I am laying down or sitting in a recliner, I put a small pillow under my foot and put something on my knee (ice bag, etc) to put a small amount of pressure on the knee to assist in lowering it. It is working, I am within an inch of touching the back of my knee to the surface. Be patient, it will come. I was allowed to come out of the brace 2 days ago(after 8 weeks) but have been doing rehab for 5 weeks. Once I was able to get enough range of motion to ride a stationary bike – progress continued. I am able to ride about 6 1/2 miles and begin on a treadmill.
I broke my tibial plateau February 7 skiing. 6 weeks with the brace straight, then bent for the past three. I started PT two weeks ago and have made progress with ROM, however, my right leg is quite bent. They say it will straighten, but I’m freaked out that it won’t and I won’t be able to resume with my hiking, skiing, snow shoeing, and kayaking. No one has mentioned this. They say it will straighten when I build my muscles. I pray to God it does. Can someone attest to this?
I know what you mean Gail. My TPF was on 2/12 on a ski trip. I’m 7 weeks post-op & no longer wear the brace & plan on ditching the one crutch for a cane this weekend. Yippee! My flexion has progressed well from 90 degrees 2 weeks ago to 115 today @ PT. But the extension is another story…I can’t seem to get any progress with it. I learned a good exercise today, lay on your stomach on your bed or somewhere you can dangle your foot over the edge, place a towel or something semi-bulky under your quad/thigh & apply 2-10 pounds of an ankle wgt. ( whatever you can tolerate) & simply let gravity pull the leg straight. Just simply lay there 5, 10, 15 minutes or however long you can. I was amazed after that he measured my extension & it was cut in half.
I think our collective fears are likely quite normal. I too hope to get back to a very active lifestyle of hiking, cycling, etc. But as many have said, this is to take many months, not days or weeks. Hang in there, best of luck.
Acupuncture helped me get my leg straight. Seriously if I hadn’t witnessed it first hand I wouldn’t have believed it
Thanks for the recommendation Pauline. I’m now 9 weeks post-op & have good flexion but poor extension. I went to see my Ortho today & he injected a steroid in the joint hoping that would help…and advised me to start taking Iboprofen ATC (Around The Clock) for the next 6-8 weeks to see if that would/should help. I got a name of a good Acupuncturist that I will look into if I don’t get results soon. Like you I am/was skeptical but we all need all the help we can get!
Best of luck.
I had my skiing accident on 2/10/14 which caused a Type I Tibial Avulsion Fracture (non-displaced). I was immobilized x 4 weeks with weight bearing at 4 weeks. I was taken out of immobilization on 3/12 and have began working on range of motion and riding a stationary bike while wearing my brace (ankle to thigh). I am a distance runner so I hope to have more freedom on 4/9. Getting better daily.
That is good to here. I had a collision playing soccer. My soccer days are over. I was doing alot of crossfit and hope to be able to return to it in July. I hope that is not to optomistic.
17 weeks post fracture……I ran a 5K race today with a run/walk method (3 min run/1 min walk) and ran 9min55sec average. Not the 8 1/2 minute mile I am used to, but I am VERY pleased with my progress. If my progress continues to move forward, I will be successfully running the New York City Marathon in November. To all those recovering: keep a positive attitude, take one day at a time, set goals and be patient. After 25 years of skiing – the question would be “Am I going snow skiing next winter?….the answer would be “No”. I have lost too much of what I enjoy daily for one week of enjoyment a year.
I just injured myself on March 23, 2014 and was told that i have a non-displaced TPF and will not require surgery; presently my Doctor has be on an ice machine and an Optiflex motion machine to provide 20-degrees of knee movement.
typically how long does it take before i can bare weigth on my leg for a TPF that did not require surgery. Will I be able to run and jump again?
Ice has been my best friend. I am seven weeks out and still icing in the evening and when I go to bed. A walker worked so much better for me than crutches. I put my stuff in the seat and could travel so much more independently.
The hospital sent me home with a polar care cube after surgery and I used it 24/7 for two weeks until I had my stitches out. It made the biggest difference.
Very useful site, I was really wondering about the nutrition and supplement side for the healing process–great advice!! I am just starting week two of my recovery from two fractures of the tibia plateau and have found this site extremely useful, including the suggestions for keeping my affected foot more mobile during this long recovery. I am in a cast from the hip to the ankle and finding the inactivity is truly getting to me in so many ways. Kathy
Please advise how to join the Facebook group for this injury ???? I would love to see more of what others have experienced !!
Thanks , Cary
https://www.facebook.com/groups/tibalplateaufractures/
I’m not sure how you join, I just went there to copy link, but didn’t see a place to request to be added
as it is a closed group. Maybe someone else here knows or you’ll figure it out. It is helpful.
Cheers,
Barb
Please tell me long the pain lasts….especially around the fracture area? Almost any activity at all seems to aggreviate my leg. I am 2 weeks out from surgery and was just fitted for a brace that is thigh to ankle with a locking mechanism at the knee. I use a walker now , instead of crutches .
I would very much appreciate some input as to how long this leg will hurt!!
Or any tips to keep it from hurting in the first place. Early mornings are the worse right now .
Thanks , Cary
I am nearly 8 months post op for tpf and seemed to be doing okay. Taking a stick with me outdoors but not using it, only have it with me as I seem to have “no brakes” when going down a slope or hill. Now, unfortunately, my ankle on my “good” leg seems to have developed soft tissue damage!! I have wanted to scream with frustration as it has hampered my walking. I’m using ice and gel on the bad ankle, as per doctor’s advice and she thinks the ankle has become “stressed” due to taking more weight than normal. My ankle may be “stressed” but so am I. Sometimes it feels like one step forwards, two back. Frustration, as you all know I’m sure, plays a big role with this condition. Anyway it’s good to “rant on”. Hope other sufferers are going on okay.
Don’t worry about the wobble board. You will be holding onto some bars against a wall most likely. It will really point out your balance deficits, but you improve fast. Sounds like the sit down machine is a Nustep. They are great. Below is a great article on recovering from TPF. It is the only scientific study I have found studying TPF’ers for a full year to gauge their recoveries.
http://www.bjj.boneandjoint.org.uk/content/87-B/9/1233.full
This was an interesting article I found studying recovery for TPF after a year. The basic conclusion of the study is that only about 15% of TPF injuries have full quad strength back at one year’s time. So this is a marathon, not a sprint. Great to hear you are trusting of your therapist. That is very important. And you have a great attitude about this whole ordeal.. ATTITUDE DETERMINES ALTITUDE!
Chris
Chris,
I read that you are 7 months post op in March. So now you are 9 months in May. Do you still feel stiffness in your injured knee/leg?
I had tpf surgery on Dec 17, 2013. I fell while skiing in Korea and had a type I tpf. So I am now 5 months post op. about 3 months FWB. I still feel stiffness in the injured knee/leg, but it gets better with rest. I can do almost everything, walking (no limping) slow jog, cycling, swimming. Walking down stairs I do feel a pain at the patella especially if the knee needs to bend at a sharper angle. Squatting is still troublesome, with about 5 minutes of warm up just to get the muscle to accept the squatting position.
I tend to agree with the Scottish study that quad muscle takes a long time to recover. I told my OS of the patella pain, and he has told the physio to ease off the squat exercises. And unfortunately squat exercises is the best way to build up the quad muscles. SO now I do a lot of leg presses at the gym to strengthen the quad.
Anyone who has tpf and is now more that a year post surgery? Would like to hear about the experience with stiffness and quad strength.
Thanks
BH – from Singapore
Janice and Dottie-Glad to hear my experience may help you both. Janice as far as getting in a pool, I was nervous as well. But as I said the pool helped me the most. I used 2 crutches to walk, and I wore those non skid deck shoes that slip over your feet that windsurfers use. I wore them into the pool and never took them off except to put on a pair of sweatpants to leave the facility. I was in such agony and frustration when my surgeon told me to start walking, and my foot wouldn’t allow it.
Since you know what plantar fasciitis is like in a big way, if you remember the first steps in the morning were usually the worst, and then your feet loosened up a bit. That was because as you slept, the fascia in your feet actually started to heal from the micro tears to your fascia during WBearing during the day. So now imagine 6-8 weeks without putting any weight on that foot. EVERYTHING in the foot as far as muscles, fascia, tendons etc shorten and atrophy. Just like your knee stiffens up being in a splint/brace, so does your foot ankle stiffen up. Weight bearing is the only way to fully stress our muscles etc. Think about astronauts being weightless for a month or more-when they return to earth, they are too weak to walk.
Another way to stretch/massage the foot is with a raquetball or use a whiffleball bat, a wooden rolling pin etc to roll under your foot. I also recommend calf stretches using a piece of foam which puts your foot at an incline i e toes on foam wedge, and heel flat on floor. We need to get our ankle flexibility back in order to help extend our knee and strike the ground with our heel as our feet contact the ground. Just wait until you start testing your balance on the wobble board. That was a rude awakening for me. But it gets better everyday. Have patience.
Chris
Very scared! My physiotherapist has talked about some sort of balance board when I am weight bearing. As my balance sucks to start with, not really looking forward to finding another way to fall. She is excellent, and I trust her 100% but still sounds scary. Every day I feel I am making such progress it’s exciting! I am faithful about my exercises at home and love to push myself even though I am 55 and overweight. Last visit she introduced me to a wonderful machine that is like a sit down cross trainer. When I first sat down and tried it it was a bit tricky, after a few pushes though I was more comfortable. She said I would find my rhythm, and boy it was fun! After 1min. I was off and running and feeling better with every push. Got kicked off after about 10 min. Because another therapist wanted it for her lady. This is such a wonderful forum. I’ve never been on one before, but so helpful to learn from others that are, or have experienced this specific injury. Hopefully if another person experiences this heel and foot pain they will know they are not alone.
Chris,
Thank You for your comments on exercising foot and ankle of injured leg. I have a TPF and am non weight barring until 4/10/14. Since hearing of your issues of pain in foot once weight barring I have started focusing on foot and ankle of that foot.
I was advised to begin doing excersises with my foot right away. Of course in the beginning you are in too much pain to even think about inflicting more upon yourself. After a week or so I started bending my toes towards me and pointing them away from me. I rotated the whole foot in circles each way. I did feel like something was tearing a bit on the bottom of my foot though. The sole of the foot felt like I had shards of glass in it when I used my good foot to touch it. I don’t know if everyone experiences this. Just my experience. I do think the more you move your leg, bend your knee etc. The easier it will be in the long run. I can’t believe the progress from day to day now that I have started physio. Good luck to you.
Janice, I had the very same problem when I was allowed to begin weight bearing. My surgeon said my xrays showed the fracture had healed, and I could begin walking. I’m a physical therapist, although I had never treated this injury. I went to PT, and the therapist said to lose the crutch on my affected side and put weight on the leg. I almost collapsed from the pain in my foot. The therapist then put me in the pool for the next 3 weeks. The first time in the pool, I was having excruciating pain in my foot. She suggested I call the surgeon immediately to make sure there wasn’t damage to my foot that had gone undetected. The surgeon’s assistant said this pain in my foot wasn’t that uncommon. Nothing was wrong she said except that all my foot muscles had atrophied from being in the splint post surgery for 6 weeks.
The mistake I had made was I did very little stretching and strengthening of my foot and ankle while NWB. I have high arches so the first thing I did was get a Dr. Scholls gel pad to put under my arch of my foot. I used that pad in my water shoes which allowed me to gradually put more weight through my foot as I walked in the pool. I also kept the pad in my regular shoe on land. The pain in my foot seemed to move from my heel to my forefoot. I was really frustrated. My knee didn’t hurt but my foot did. When off my feet, I really focused on stretching my foot muscles with such exercises as curling my toes with my hand forcefully forwards and backwards. Being non weight bearing causes your plantar fascia to really tighten as well, similar to plantar fasciitis. I also did a lot of calf stretches, and standing on a foam pad (Airex balance pad or Hemingweigh balance Pad-I have a hemingweigh pad I use for balance training with my patients-most PT clinics have these-you can get one on Amazon for $35- the airex is much more expensive) The pad was crucial for me to begin putting more more weight on my foot on land-I also did a lot of tennis ball massage to my foot rolling the ball back and forth under my foot- Pool therapy was the most important aspect of rehab for me when I started weightbearing. If you can get in a pool, that would really help you beginning to weight bear.
I think it was probably 6 weeks at least after starting PT that my foot started to feel less pain, and I could put full weight through the foot. I hope this helps allay your frustrations a bit. The foot pain was my most frustrating part of my rehab. But it will eventually subside. Just remember to also do your quad sets as much as possible. That is the most important muscle group to strengthen. I’m 7 months post op now, and I’d say my leg is only about 40% as strong as my other leg. I was in great shape when my dog broke my leg, and I’m still very weak. I was out of work for almost 4 months, before I felt I could return to my job as a PT. Since my job entails me being on my feet all day, I had to be able to feel stable on my feet as well as be able to support my geriatric patients if they were to stumble. If I had a desk job, I would have been able to return in 2 months probably. Be patient. From what I have learned thus far, this is a very serious injury, and we need to give ourselves at least a year before we can truly gauge how far we have recovered.
You will get stronger and have less pain one day at a time. Recovering from a TPF is a full time job. You have to treat it like a job, and work just as hard on your own time as when you are in the PT clinic.
I hope this helps. Take care,
Chris in Va. Beach
Thanks so much Chris. I couldn’t find anyone with this same complaint. About 15 years ago I had plantar faciitis surgery on both feet. I had suffered for years and tried physio, cortisone injections but nothing heiped until the surgery. Not quite sure what it is they did, but I know they cut into both sides of my heel and somehow released the plantar fascia. Could it be that with being NWB for 8 weeks that the facia has shortened again? Our pool at the hospital physio is closed right now but I can see that being extremely helpful. I would be too nervous to go into a public pool and slip on the wet tiles as I am only PWB right now. I will try the tennis ball exercise and let my physiotherapist know about this info. I was hoping to get back to work on the 7th of April that would be 13 weeks post op but as I am in teaching in a very large school, I think I need to be healed a bit more. Once I can put that heel down I’ll be fine.
I’m in my 10th week of recovery. I stated physio at 9 weeks. The first week was only toe touching ground. The second week was heal-toe walking with very little weight. Next week I will have 50% weight bearing leading up to full weight bearing by the 4th week. My question is, I have a lot of pain in my foot, especially the bottom of the heel when I try to put any weight on it. It hurts more than my knee at this point and I have not seen anyone post a similar complaint. My physiotherapist told me its from bone loss from being NWB for so long. Has anyone else experienced this?
The above information as well as the comments is the most information I’ve received about TPFS seen since my accident and subsequent TPF on 12/15/13.