It is hard to believe it has almost been 9 months since that fateful night when I broke my fibula playing futsal. I could not walk for 6 weeks but thereafter began the slow road to recovery with PT and gym work. Within 8 weeks post-op, I began to ran, and within 6 months I was playing pick up soccer. I even played on a coed futsal team this fall. For the most part, my ankle felt fine, but I began to notice more discomfort over the plate and screws. An x-ray revealed that the fracture was totally healed but that 2 of the screws were broken and others were loose. It was impossible to know for certain whether the screws and plate were causing my discomfort, but I felt confident that they were the culprit.
Yesterday, I had surgery to remove the hardware from my ankle fracture fixation. It was a fairly straightforward procedure. The worst part was actually nausea and vomiting in the recovery room that was probably precipitated by dehydration from being NPO and the anesthesia.
Today, I feel great! There is a little discomfort and swelling over the incision, but otherwise I feel fine. My surgeon has instructed me to avoid running or jumping for the next month. However, I should be able to resume activities by mid-December and to resume soccer in January.
I am grateful and thankful for the miracles of modern medicine. If this had been 20 or 30 years ago, I probably would have just had a cast and might still be walking with a limp. However, the new techniques in fixation of bones has revolutionized the recovery from accidents like mine.
I will never take my health for granted again, and I have a much greater appreciation for the simple things in life, like walking. Here's to living life to the fullest ... without any metal on board!
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