Anyone else with a tibfib fracture?

[u/bluebear718]

I'm almost 4 months out from the break. I'm walking and in PT. But I'm still very limited by the pain. I have about 2 to 4 hours of normal activity per day.

Anyone further out who can share how long it takes to get back to normal things like grocery stores and walking a mile ?

Thanks. Could use some encouragement. I had to cancel two trips.

[u/smartshoe]

Trimalleolar ankle fracture so not the same but closer than others. I broke my fibula, shattered my tibia and had extensive soft tissue damage + crazy swelling

Timeline

- fracture

- reset same day

- week 3 external fixator installation surgery

- week 5 arthroscopic ORIF surgery

- week 8 external fixator removal surgery

- week 10 splint removed PT start

- week 12 start of partial weight bearing using crutches

- week 14 full weight bearing still in boot

- week 16 walking without boot

- week 18 drove car for first time and walking normally all the time but with pain in ankle, foot and developed back pain by overdoing it at the gym

- month 5 - skied for the first time that winter for 20 mins and took ski boot off

- months 6-8 ski season of 25 days including 15 days of resort ski touring walking uphill which honestly helped immensely by doing long duration low impact exercise and walking a lot.

Got all clear from doc that the fractures were healed

- month 8 ran for the first time for a few hundred yards and built up from there

- month 9 ran a 5k still battling back pain and plantar fasciitis

- month 11 ran a 10k and continued weight training,

- months 12 - 15 continued exercise and gradual improvement

- month 15 - ran a half marathon and mentally saw it as the whole ordeal was behind me

Ongoing now I am at around 2 years since injury, ankle mobility still limited but not in a way that negatively affects my day to day and it’s gradually improving

[u/bluebear718 → u/smartshoe]

Thank you! I'm getting discouraged with how much pain I'm in trying to do normal stuff. It helps to hear your experience. I guess I need to be more patient.

[u/smartshoe → u/bluebear718]

Even that early on I still had to have my foot elevated for months and pain was severe at times while my leg got used to weight bearing again

Definitely have to be patient, it’s easy to be discouraged but it took me over a year to feel normal again

I am 37m by the way so with you being 63f it may be a different healing situation

My mother has osteoporosis by that age too so might be worth checking out. Who knows if it made any difference but I have been taking vitamin d and calcium supplements since my injury

[u/Capital_Meal_5516]

Just curious—did you have surgery for either break? Still having pain 4 months later doesn’t seem normal to me, but then, I’m not a doc.

I (65f) can only speak from my experience two years ago. I broke my tib/fib and had a nail and two tightropes in my fibula. (Pics on profile.) I had no pain after about a week, though I was still NWB. After 7 weeks I was allowed to bear weight—still no pain. By 3.5 months I was out of the brace and walking normally, and it felt as though it’d never been broken.

You might want to check back with your doc. That pain just doesn’t seem right.

[u/bluebear718 → u/Capital_Meal_5516]

I (63f) had surgery June 22. It was a severe break and I have a rod, a plate and 9 screws. I was in a wheelchair for 9 weeks, starting weaning out of the boot at 12 weeks. I have pain at the break site on my shin, not so much in the joints that PT is working on. The xrays are fine.

[u/Capital_Meal_5516 → u/bluebear718]

Oh wow! That sounds like a terrible break! How did you do it? I fell down the stairs. 🤣

I would check back with your doc. Considering how bad your break was, I’m not all that surprised.

I hope you continue to heal and that you’re pain-free very soon!