I started this rehab in an Aircast. I was in a cast for 6 weeks then a boot for another 5 after surgery. It felt better in the spring and I was able to wakeboard and hike. Hung around the house without the boot on to let my foot breathe and continue to let the swelling go down after being cooped up in a cast for so long. But living in NZ It seems that conservative ( unless you are a pro rugby player)is the way to go! I started riding a stationary bike just to move my legs even when I was still using the boot. It's extremely important to have an Achilles tendon tear diagnosed and treated as soon as possible. I am hoping to get in to see my doc before my Thursday appt. 3) Basic ROM exercises: These went in the sequence of 3x Alphabet, 30x circles in each direction, dorsi/planta flex up and down 30x, lateral ROM 30x, surfboard ankle circles (dont know what to call these!) Learn the Signs, Klinio Review for 2023: A Comprehensive Overveview, a sudden sharp pain in the back of the calf muscle that may gradually turn into an ache, the sensation that someone has kicked you in the back of the leg, swelling of the back of the calve and/or heel, bruising and/or discoloration of the back of the calve and/or heel, difficulty walking up the stairs, on a slope, or in general. My surgery went good! Non-surgical treatment for Achilles tendon rupture. 3timer, the only advice i have is take it REALLY easy. . Sad times! I hobbled with great care and favoured my foot. Told me that I need to wear the boot for 4 months and continue my PT. Achilles also needed lengthened. (All those patients had relatively fresh ATRs, <14 days old.). not quite as bad a before. @filosofo, its great to hear that you and your leg are both so happy, after skipping the op. I think this could be a good option for sleeping and it would not be expensive. It turned out I didnt rerupture my tendon.just hurt it pretty bad and made a lot of bleeding and swelling etcset me back about 10 days.but at exactly 8 weeks post snap/op I can walk pretty well. The symptoms of Achilles tendon rupture may develop abruptly during an activity. Im keeping my fingers crossed that it wasnt a rerupture. I am getting close to full motion, but still working on getting back to full strength. Thanks for help, if your thompsons test is good, then your tendon is probably still attached. If not, youre almost certainly still intact. Disclaimer, National Library of Medicine Unlike the first surgery where it was done as an outpatient, this time he kept me 2 nights pumping IV antibiotics. My Dr. leaves the practice, wound at 20 weeks starts to weep, go and see the Dr. who is taking over and he doesnt like the look of my scar, lots of adhesion and weeping. Every two weeks we removed the cast and flexed the foot a bit to put some stress on tendon. nobodys done a study of faster, so its unproven. Dr. J. Michael Bennett is a Board Certified Orthopedic Surgeon and a Fellowship Trained Sports Medicine Physician. The current consensus based on research is to treat them conservatively since the functional outcome and chance of re-rupture are similar (7% to 15%) using both . Progress has been slow but steady. I still had strength in the ankle, could even do toe lifts. Couldthe doctor/MRI be wrong? For the past 4 months Ive dreaded this section of the blog. When I go outside, I use the boot for armor just in case the ground is uneven. The key symptoms are sudden pain and swelling at the back of the ankle. See how that feels. She pressed the button to close the garage and the next thing I heard was her yell out and I turned to see my dog had gotten off the couch and was standing under the closing garage door. Is it common to re-rupture this early on in the recovery process? Has anyone on here fully recovered from a rerupture?? Id GUESS that the sensations differ hugely from patient to patient, like the level of pain and the specific feelings from the initial ATR. In my desire to push forward into my rehabilitation I thought I was ready, I asked are you sure? The only problem then is that the list gets too long and I start missing bits out! I had an open surgery 6 days after the injury, and 9 days post-surgery, I was jumping up a set of stairs in my soft cast and slipped. It makes a world of difference to be able to get home at the end of the day, take the boot off and just sit in a chair with the leg propped up. Back in the hard non weight bearing cast for another 6 weeks. Is there another boot out there that is more comfortable that can be used instead of the Bledsoe? I was worried and ask if it was possible that I partially ruptured it and he said no. What are the symptoms of a ruptured Achilles tendon? But I felt the pop again and went down. Your comments are appreciated. If you overstretch your Achilles tendon, it . ASK FOR HELP! Somebody mentioned a Bursitis - could it be that? Brian. God, I hope theyre right. So you can point your toes down fine without an AT, but you cant (e.g.) As I fell on it the pain was quite bad and I was in shock from the fall. hey guys, havent update for a while, the reason being, i was in the hospital again, this time for an infection, its kinda odd as I had my re rupture dated way back on june 2nd, i discovered the infection on aug 12 and had surgery on aug 14 to remove the pus, was on antibiotic for the past 4 weeks, just as things cant get worse, i now have plantar fasciitis, its really frustrating, everytime i think i can finally do some rehab excercise i have to stop, sigh. went for a ultrasound scan and they couldnt see anything so then had a mri scan. How do you feel now? It also might not be a complete tear. It may be hard to tell the extent and if its just partial Id consider no second surgery. If you can find a way to work up a sweat without scaring your leg, or even working out without a sweat, you may find that the whole world seems a bit brighter. Deeleft, I agree completely with your I feel exactly as though I have had surgery but only to set up good conditions for non-op healing. The puzzles are still multiple, though: (1) Theres precious little evidence on non-op treatment of single reruptures treated promptly, and none on 3rd-time-rounders. Good luck Mike. Did it pop? Another blogger here followed the UWO protocol several weeks after a rupture or rerupture (I forget which), and was happy for a while then it ruptured again, too easily. The MRI tech says he sees a hole which means a rupture. 2005-2022 Healthline Media a Red Ventures Company. Especially, after going through this once already. I was doing leg curls at about week 3(was told by physio not to start these until about week 8-10 at 6 week mark).also began doing straight leg deadlifts the other day. I heard that awful tearing nose - it almost sounded like paper ripping. Finally it tore so much that couldnt walk. B) Stand/balance on bad foot on unstable foam surface for 360seconds. However she will be visiting her folks out of the country for three weeks starting next week ( a prior commitment). He should be able to start doing pull-ups within the next month, just make sure he lands on the uninjured foot. Hi all, just thought I would update about my injury in case my experience is useful for anyone else. Coupla things, Rodney: Just a simple run towards the hoop after a missed 3 pointer to try and grab the rebound. Id be interested in talking to your orthopedist in Atlanta about mine that just snapped. That was painful but I was able to push his hand down slightly. If anyone is curious, I went the non-surgical route. BTW, the other fanciest modern trial that compared op with non-op was done in 2007 in NZ by Twaddle et al. 1st time at oct 2011 n had surgery. I am going with the sponge bath the next few days. Causes of Achilles tendon rupture include sudden forced plantar flexion of the foot, direct trauma, and long-standing tendinopathy or intratendinous degenerative conditions. He is very worried about the risk of infection so hes reluctant to do anything with too much intervention. Holy cow- thats terrible news HarleyLady. Just remember to keep the boot on if you do and if it hurts then stop. From what Ive read and seen, most people re-rupture the previous rupture. Hi .. Its not embarassing to slip on a kids toy - theres nothing good about a re-rupture, but accidents happen and it must of been quite the trauma and just bad luck. Obviously I am hopeful that this is just natural healing and its going well, but my great fear is that I have re-ruptured and everything feels loose because it has detached again. Please keep us posted. Just another little update for me. If they suspect youve ruptured your Achilles tendon, they may also order an MRI or ultrasound to determine the severity of the injury. Accessibility My surgeon went for the plaster cast. but it turned out to just be some scar tissue tearing and my AT was fine. Know the symptoms and what to do if you experience them. (Our ATs dont usually feel like weve been kicked for nothing, unless weve been kicked!) I a not sure where to post, so here it is! I agree with all the things youve said, however like you mentioned at the finish, I always end up going again to how I used to do things. New Dr. is orthopedist, he said the risk of complications from surgery are high. If you think the evidence. Achilles tendinosis is a degeneration of the Achilles tendon. 2 weeks after the surgery doctor took the stiches out and replaced my splint with an ACE tape. If the tendon gap is 5mm or greater with the toes pointed down, the re-rupture rate is much greater and outcomes much worse without surgery. My post above was intended for Kai. I actually did some 60lb one legged deadlifts, lots of them I lost count. Then I ruptured my left achilles in March of 2017. Well I was walking up stairs today and felt excruciating pain. Gravity, who would have thought. Im in the UK, and have an appt on the 24th Aug to have this cast off, and then to physio again, so it will have been 2 weeks in a slab and bandages and then 6 weeks in this cast. Brian: I had some swelling after getting my cast off too. I have to confess that I have found the NHS second to none so far. Narrow vs wide. I am so emotionally distraught at the moment, one minute i am mad as hell, next I am feeling sorry for myself, then I am mad at myself bc I feel sorry for myself as there are others that are much worse off that mei am going for a second/third opinion on mon..dr 2 says mri 1 and mri 2 are practically identical..dr 2 says the tendon would never have healed as it was too detiorated and a ligament transfer would have been necessary Just make sure you have your reason ready in case he asks why. Postive thoughts, positive thoughts. A week later I ruptured my AT again, this time at work. He served as assistant team physician to Chivas USA (Major League Soccer) and the United States men's and women's national soccer teams. I did not really experience severe pain - more pins and needles. I still have hope that the MRI will have some good news for me, or at least not such bad as Im suspecting, whichever the outcome, this time I will be more aware and proactive, find a specialized ATR PT and always get second opinions, and never trust the reputation of an institution that claims to be the best on my area. Im a graphic designer so i lay on my stomach at work with my feet up or i sit on the floor with a pillow under my knee. I basically recovered on my own in 2009 and my Achilles is stronger than it ever was. My surgoen finally saw me 5 days later, but could not tell if there was a re-tier due to the swelling. Glad to hear that nothig happen to you, it gives me a glimmer of hope. Monday morning, doc says that we gotta start over again. Anyway, after the surgery, they put the splint on the top of the shin and foot and no problems so far. Although the Achilles tendon can withstand great stresses from running and jumping, it is vulnerable to injury. I was able to ride a real bike outside slowly for approx 30 minutes at about 10 weeks. Lots of answers and advice can be brilliant or stupid-crazy, depending on how far along the patient is in healing, so that Timeline Widget (on your own blog) can really help you get smart advice and avoid the other kind. I am a fit 31 year old who is 4 weeks post surgery from a complete rupture to my right achilles which occurred during my basketball grand final. Theres at least one waterproof BOOT, the VacoCast (called VacoPied in Europe). This is Barry. I hope you havent re-torn it. If its bleeding does that mean its probably ruptured? Treating a ruptured Achilles tendon is usually conservative (non-operative) in a Controlled Motion Ankle (CAM) Boot, or it may require surgery. I was physically handicapped, and now financially. He told me that since there is swelling around the ancle he can to tell for sure if I re-ruptured the tendon or not. I have ruptured my achilles 17 june. Naturally, I responded Oh, are you Ok now? She said No, and I will never be. Imagine that? The single heel raise strength (also the calf muscle size/definition) on my injured side is still a little short of my uninjured side, but is very closesurprising that it doesnt affect my sprint speed! And how did it heal? You got through this once, you DO have what it takes to get through this again. . Original injury occured December 1st 2009 and was operated on December 9th. They believe that I pulled some scar tissue loose and in their opinion it is a good thing. The rest of my session was done barefoot as usual I am wearing the boot. 28 Aug,2nd surgery. The surgery consists of making a small incision in the back part of the leg, and using sutures to re-attach the two ends of the ruptured tendon. Continuous pain and weakness. I hope it is scar tissue and thought that it might be but the suddeness of it concerned me. Yup, that sounds like the traditional (old-fashioned) conservative treatment, with the ~15% re-rupture rate, rather than the new aggressive non-operative rehab protocol like the UWO protocol, with the ~2-3% re-rupture rate! However, after a recent four-day holiday with friends which saw me on my feet/walking quite a lot, I heard and felt a popping sensation. And our job is to help. It was for brief second then went away. Last addition: Apologies for writing a novel. This injury is bad, but you can come back given time. Ive got plenty of sports med and foot and ankle docs that I work with that I can bring this up to as well. Kevin, you[re not being ridiculous. My recommendation is to get surgical repair, mostly because the surgery signals a clear day 1 that starts your recovery and also provides greater confidence on the repair of the tendon. Most often, a ruptured spleen is caused by blunt force trauma. from your vigorous opposition to this advice, i can only assume that you think he needs to get back into shoes faster than the last 2 times that he re-ruptured. About 5 days post-op, I too slipped while on my way to the bathroom while using crutches. Brian. Things have actually been well in my world. I just got my cast off today (5.5 wks post-op, after re-rerupture 6 days after first op) and cleared up to full weight bearing as tolerated in the boot. Zero pain and I actually walk a bit on it (although it is impossible to put pressure on foot because of dorsi flexed position). thanks for the prompt respond norm, in my country all the top doctors works in private hosiptals, I am too broke to go private so I did it in a public hospital, which is another reason why I m afraid they messed it up, I read alot of stuff about ATR, the boots and stuff but they dont have it here, 6 weeks on cast then both feet on the ground is what they suggested(i might not have my re rupture if i m on boot) but forget about the past, i look forward to have a pain free healthy life again. @ the time I was 2 weeks and 2 days post-op and only had an ACE wrap on with my foot pointed down. The diagnosis of an Achilles tendon rupture is typically straightforward and can be made through this type of examination. Best wishes. There could be some scar tissue around the wound or the tendon. About a week after starting to walk with just the boot, i decided to not use the boot as it was irritating my surgical area and causing significant swelling and pain. Thank you for your info. However, when he did the squeeze calf test my foot did not move, thus his concern that I re-ruptured it. The Achilles tendon is the largest tendon in the body and it connects the calf muscles to the heel bone. Yeah it sucks but strangely enough I only realised yesterday that I seemed to have found a new routine. Due to my issue with having gotten blood clots after my last surgery and therefore being on blood thinning medication they may be reluctant to do another surgery but I think Id prefer them to do one if they can I just want the best possible repair! Thats six weeks in total since the operation. The dr. said that hes never seen a rerupture with the surgery option, so Im feeling pretty comfortable this time around. Next he had me turn on my stomach to do the thompson test. I am now fine. Aw thanks guys I was having a rough day dealing with reality that day! Has anyone else had this scenario ? Your point is overwhelmingly true, though (1) a few pros are startting to break ranks, e.g. I hope, like everyone, to not find myself in the position to post here. The study and the Commentary were both available on the pubs web-site since Sept. or Oct. Of course a non-op boot is much more work-friendly than surgery (I didnt miss a day of work! I got to my shower on crutches while I was NWB and PWB, then stepped inside and sat down, rested the crutches outside the shower, took off the boot and rested it outside. MRI showed another rupture and fluid, Aspiration done of the fluid showed staph infection. Was gutted when it re-ruptured. eCollection 2017. 2020. I think the best way to describe mine was that I just knew. Stiches come out next week. So on average do you know when people see a negative Thompson test during non-op? about $100-150. I ruptured my achilles playing hockey on March 19th 2014. Did the pain intensify or lessen? Re-ruptured. I would encourage your wife not to worry about having a boot instead of a hard cast. He actually takes the time to sit down and explain what exactly is going on with my achilles tendon rupture, and his plan for the recovery. The guy here who treated a post-op re-rupture WITHOUT surgery is actually Brock, not Brad. I do have a friend that has been helping. -, Am J Sports Med. Achilles tendon rupture is up to 5 times more likely to take place in men than in women. My upper calf muscle (gastocnemius) was a bit sore yesterday (even today) that tells me the running might be the best way to rebuild the calf strength back so that I can do the single heel raises. Felt like someone slashed me as hard as they could on the back of my ancle (much like many of your stories). Keep some in your bag for work so you dont put your colleagues off You sound like you are doing great. In some cases, things happen. January 2009 had surgery on left. Anything I can do that may tell me one way or the other? Maffulli N, Oliva F, Maffulli GD, Buono AD, Gougoulias N. Foot Ankle Surg. My guess is that feeling tension is a good sign. I didnt notice any popping or anything specific and did not slip and fall. Doctor says partial and not the worst he has seen either. Had you tried the Thompson test work before this fall but after surgery? Caught the boot on something at home last night, severe pain up the back higher up than where the initial rupture was and there appears to be the divot again. The pain lasted at least a full day, and I was fortunate to have pain medication during this time. Off topic, Brian above joins me and a few others here in returning to sports form WITHOUT returning to a full-height 1-leg heel raise. Operative or non-op, cast or early boot (boot starting at anything from 0 to 10(?) Answer was sure, now I will be lucky if it is Christmas! I was lucky it was in the am and I was able to see the Dr. right way. No further re-ruptures were recorded. After an Achilles tendon rupture, all patients should acutely rest the joint, ice the area, elevate the ankle, and take analgesics, like acetaminophen, to decrease their pain. I found some new Cryo cuffs on eBay for $79 - Im so excited to try it out! He also said I should starting easing to get rid of the boots in a few weeks. Thanks. I am not sure if a rerupture means the exact same place or just another rupture while still healing. I dont know. Never have experienced any pain even at the time of rupture. After 6 weeks in the non-weight bearing cast then 4 in the boot I was all ready phyched to be moving on to complete recovery and get back to normal. I guess what I am looking for here is an example or stories from others who had close alarms, or calls and to what extent that was. Common symptoms of an Achilles tendon rupture include: In some cases, you may only have a partial tear. I have to keep my legs pretty warm or I get zapped. I ruptured my AT in March when my ankle was grabbed by an escalator. I was allowed to go to the boot on 9/13, at PT the other day I was able to do a couple of calf raises. Philip, I think mikek753 was one of several people here who could still feel a notch in his AT even after most of his strength returned. Things that dont work out at work or elsewhere are really unimportant - nothing is as bad as not being able to walk again. Who knows?!? The test yielded minimal response in my foot but there was some movement. Turned out I had torn the ligaments and the scar tissue. First time round, I did it playing five-a-side soccer. I fear the worst (re-rupture) however I did not feel a pop or extreme pain like the first time and again I am still progressing as far as capability but the pain will not go away. This was a distal tear and there was much caution due to the location of the tear near the heel/bone. Surprisingly, there wasnt much pain. God Bless you I know this sucks but the time will pass & as long as you are willing to put in some effort you will heal, your youth should help accelerate that process. LL, Mike: Really sorry about the possible re-injury. kb60 2017 Dec;120(12):1007-1014. doi: 10.1007/s00113-017-0420-4. I was on my own in the house, all my flatmates were out. 1st time at oct 2011 n had surgery. 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