ankle arthroscopy

[sc66]

hi i am cotemplating ankle arthroscopy...i have periodic discomfort and localised swelling etc but seem to manage reasonably at times although mutiple scans demonstrate extensive wear/damage etc!!! in a nutshell i am really worried about getting surgery and making it worse than it is... should i man up and just get it done or bear with it until it is really unbearable?? how many opinions should i seek?? also what is likely/common recovery times for basic procedure eg walking comfortably/weight bearing?? - any advice/opinions would be greatly appreciated-thanks all

[Tamsin]

Hiya,

I had an ankle arthroscopy 18 months ago. It took almost a year to recover from the operation all told - although my recovery was held back a bit by a knee problem which started a few months after the operation. I didn't have loads of pain during my recovery, and was able to walk comfortably, but the problem was - not for very long before I got tired. I think it took so long to recover because I was really unfit from the 6 weeks on crutches, I lost a lot of muscle weight, and also the time I hadn't been able to be active before the operation because of the pain.

I am much more comfortable now that I ever was before the operation, and definitely think that I did the right thing having the op (micro fracture for two holes in cartilage - advanced arthritis). I had pain on almost every step before the op.

Only you know how much pain you can take before resorting to surgery - have you made a good go of physio yet?

Hope this is helpful.

[sc66]

Hi Tamsin,

Thanks so much for your insight - yes ive been down the physio path but it doesnt really help much, my concern is that i was under the impression it is a relatively simple non invasive procedure and i would be back running shortly after the op but reading alot of these posts has me worried that the recovery could be a lot longer than the 4-6-8 weeks i was hoping particularly as i already have travel booked not long after the op. maybe i will wait to when i get back to do better rehab! Thanks again

[Tamsin]

The thing is everyone's different.

I hear what you are saying about reading other posts on this web-site, and I'm not sure what impact it would have had on me if I'd found it before the operation. I found this site while was in the depths of despair about my recovery about a year ago, and its provided me with great support as I have got better. But I think its probably true that there might be a natural bias on web-sites like this for those of us who have suffered for a long time.

FYI when I had problems with cartilage in my knee, about six months ago, the surgeon said that it was a very different procedure to the one I had on my ankle, and not to be put off surgery in future by my experience with my ankle. I think arthroscopy can be quite a simple thing to recover from, and for my knee the surgeon said it would be a month at the most.

In terms of running, I wasn't able to run at all before my operation but I was able to start trying to run about 4 months after. It was definitely worth it in the long run, but its probably a good idea to go on holiday first - I ended up on holiday in Ibiza with crutches 6 weeks after my op, not the best!

I suppose what I am saying is trust your physician/surgeon... and good luck!

[alice0110]

I'm thinking I need an arthroscopy
What types of pain have you been getting?
I've had pain for 10 months
And the longer you leave it the worse it gets!

[erindk81]

It's worth remembering that not all arthroscopies are the same... the term refers to the type of surgery (ie done with an arthroscope through little cuts) not what is actually done. I have had 3 - one was a cartledge harvest (recovery time - a couple of days), cartledge implant (2 weeks in a back slab, 4 weeks in a cam walker), and recently, a harvest, graft removal, cyst drilling, spur removal, etc etc etc (recovery time at least 3 months).

My advice - like Tamsin said, only you know how much pain you are in and what you can cope with - I waited until I was in CONSTANT pain. And you need to seek advice on whether the damage will get worse if you leave it.

I don't know if that helps, but you also need to be aware that some times (about 2%) surgery makes it worse. Pros and cons...

[sc66]

Hello all and thanks very much for all you considerate imputs, much appreciated.
To summarise after much deliberation i did bite the bullet and got the arthscopy and am now in the rehab phase working as hard as I can to get back as much function as is possible. Plenbty of rice, exercise, physio going on at the moment!! Surgeon cleaned up alot and I believe that in the shorter to long term it was a wise decision to get it done (staying positive) even though i still have a while to go on the path to pre injury duties. cheers all

[mick80]

Hi sc66

I'm now 2months and 6 days post my ankle arthroscopy, and in additon to arthroscopy I also had the tumor (PVNS) removed from my ankle, and I feel great. Walking normally, full strength in the ankle and am about to start cycling and light running. So things are really going well. Hope your recovery is as quick/good as mine is.

[sc66]

Hi All,

Thanks for your post Mick80 it was really encouraging to hear some positive news and know i am on the right track!!! It sounds like I got my op a few weeks after you - i am walking fine have got good strength/stability/flexibility, have been cycling for some time and am about to start running again (thank goodness!!). Although i still experience some periodic discomfort it is certainly improving day by day and i am sure once i start exercising more it will strenthen significantly. All the best with the ongoing recovery - my specialist actually told me pre op that it would take 4-6 months or possibly more before i was close to being near 100% and i think this was spot on from my observations to date!!!

Sorry its taken me so long to get bacl to u Alice0110 but pre-op i was experiencing ongoing discomfort and pain. Thats not to say it was always there as sometimes it would feel great but usually after a short while walking especially, it would start to ache and i would have to slow down as it would invariably get worse and worse. I wouldnt say it got any worse over the months but i just got sick of the pain coming and going -waking up one morning with it feeling good and the next bad etc...so after much deliberation and reluctancy i took the step of gettting it done and havent looked back.
I didnt come to the decision lightly and would be happy to answer any other questions you may have if it helps either way as i was carrying the injury for sometime before i made my decision.

[Anth1]

Hi Mick,

Great to hear about your recovery, I hope all is still going well for you.
I recently also had an ankle anthroscopy to remove catillage damage and some fluid which had caused me swelling in the last few years.
A biopsy was also done at the same time on cysts that had come up on the MRI....Surgeon Havinder Bedi, confirned PVNS ....wondering if you can provide any advice on your experience?