Today I went for my first post-op visit with my doctor - dressing change, checked the incisions, and we discussed what he found in my foot. He gave me 13 photos of the inside of my ankle joint and explained that I had a significant amount of scar tissue within the joint that was "chronic", plus some acute injuries that showed that there was active scar tissue trying to form within the joint. I have two major incisions along the lateral surface of my ankle - one just behind the ankle bone and about an inch higher; and one crescent shaped incision about 2.5 inches long that is in the "crease" just below my ankle bone. (photo link attached for those not faint-of-heart...)
photo link...
There's also a little port incision (2-stitch number) that is on the inside of my ankle - this is from the arthroscope camera. While making the incision in my foot, my doctor discovered that there was a nerve that was out of its normal anatomical position. The Lateral Plantar Nerve branch is usually located towards the medial top surface of the foot. Mine just happened to have migrated south a bit, and was in the way of the surgical repairs. The doctor "lifted" the skin on the top of my foot and tucked the nerve back into place properly; this has caused numbness in the top of my foot plus in my fourth and fifth toes. The doctor indicated that the nerve will "re-set" itself; this happens at a rate of about 1.0 mm per day; with my foot being a size 11 (God bless the White Family!), my foot measures in at 27.1 centimeters; so the anticipated re-growth rate for the injured nerve is 271 days, or just about 9 months. Fantastic!
My day started with loads of fun... my favorite medical management nurse called this morning. She asks how I'm doing (lot of pain), how I'm getting around the house (crutches, and a task chair because our halls are too narrow for a wheelchair); how the pain meds are affecting me (hard to concentrate); how my appetite is (OK but definitely less than normal), and then comes the most important question of all - "How are your bowels?". Uh, really? Is this necessary? I don't even talk about this stuff with my husband unless it's absolutely critical. So then I realize why she's asking... codeine-based medications have a tendency to make the plumbing get a little backed-up... so I politely dodge the question by telling her that my doctor warned me ahead of time so I bought some Miralax and have been taking it as a preventative measure. She seems pleased, and tells me that she'll be checking in again in about 2-3 weeks to see how I'm getting along.
I wonder how hard it is to get a phone number changed... :-)
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