Any expert advice welcomed please (don’t fall off again is already noted :-):

13 Oct: Fracture ocurred on Marin Trail
21 Oct: Finally operated: Open reduction, Philos plate
22 Oct: Discharged and physio commenced (pendulum exercises only)
01 Nov: Secondary complications (indirect, emergency readmission to hospital), all physio stopped due to incapacity
08 Nov: Physio re-commenced (pendulum exercises only)
09 Nov: Discharged from hospital.
21 Nov: “Propper” physio started

My Physio is a mountain biker and understands my desire to get back on the bike asap and she seems to know what she is doing. Nonetheless I would appreciate any advice as the necessary delay to physio has left me with a lot of muscle wastage and I am concerned at how long it may take to recover reasonable function. e.g. I cannot yet move my left hand from gear lever to steering wheel (but could lift it there with my right hand). I am 50 years old BTW. If anyone has had similar op, how long did it take you to get back to tackling the same old trails?

Thanks in advance for any advice.

Im hoping that you are not driving if you can’t lift your hand from the gear lever to the wheel without the other hand helping??
There will be no experts here better than the ones who have examined you properly. Each case is very different.
Best get onto the turbo asap to get the legs working so that when your arm gets better you are not held back by the rest of your body!

Don’t rush it mate.

Sounds like you’ve had a pretty nasty prang.

grazedknees has a good idea about a turbo, yeah your arm will waste a little but at east you’ll be able to maintain leg strength.

Most importantly don’t rush. Youre at the age (sorry) where recovery is slow. A hasty & premature return to activity will only delay full recovery.

As for how long? How longs a piece of string…I’m sorry I can’t be more informative than that…everybody heals at a different rate. Your physio & doc are the best people to ask..

Sounds nasty.

Don’t rush it and follow advice. Listen to your body…it’ll soon let you know if you’re doing too much!

Mend well! 🙂

I had the same op in July last year, it was about 11 weeks before I could drive again, was still quite an effort to lift my arm to the steering wheel and i did not have the strength in my arm to overcome the spring to get the gear lever in to reverse!

With physio using, initialy using a broom handle then elastic bands and walking the arm up the wall and light weights the strength did start to come back quite quickly and was back on the local trails about 5 months after the op.

Best advice I can give is do the physio exercises as often as you can, the strength and movement will come back.

chris

Thanks all for the advice. No worries grazed knees, I will not be attempting to drive until I am able.

Sidders, I’m wishing I hadn’t asked: 11 weeks to drive and 5 months just for the local trails – wow that’s worse than I had hoped. Still it’s good to what to expect. Please don’t tell me you’re only 25 🙁

A borrowed turbo trainer is already set up and being put to use and Santa’s been asked to bring me one of my very own (in fact, I think he popped by in a CityLink van today and asked Mrs Mudglutten to be one of his elves). If I’m really confined to the trainer for the next 4 months, then I guess the upside is that at least my legs won’t be slowing me down…

What’s the proper physio that you’ve been given?

I had the same fracture but no op.

I had whatever you call that physio in the water (duh, that would be hydrotherapy, wouldn’t it) after 3 or 4 weeks? was an absolute godsend, first time I felt ‘normal’ post fracture.

I was off driving for 12 weeks and it took a good while after that until I was back and truly active. 6 months is probably a good estimate.

I was in my late 30’s at the time.

It just takes time, sorry…

Glupton: private sports physio with specific expertise in shoulder injuries and cycling (and other, irrelevant expertises). She came recommended too.

Sound advice above. Listen to your physio, there are no short cuts and getting it right is more important than rushing back and botching it. Hydro would be a good idea.

That tells me who you’re seeing, but not what they’re giving intervention wise. I do wonder why people always go to private “sports” physios (whatever one of those may be) when there is no such thing as a sports injury. There are just injuries.

The best physios I know with any sort of injury, who are probably the best in the country at what they do all work exclusively in the NHS. The proper, top of the tree physios will go nowhere near elite sports because the hours are horrendous and the pay is crap compared to what the get in the public sector.

Glupton, not knowing the jargon, it’s hard to describe the exercises, but here’s my attempt at what I think I’m doing…:
1 pendular exercises
2 medial rotation (very limited movement)
3 unassisted flexation (again, very limited movement)
4 assisted flexion (shoulder pulley)
5 external rotation

So bog standard exercises for anyone with your injury. Apart from one omission – abduction. Holding a stick in both hands, use the good arm to push the gammy arm out to the side.

Did you not get a trip to the physio dept, in the hospital where you had your operation done, before they sent you home? That’s what happens in the NHS in Scotland.

MG,
Having recovered from 3 serious mtb injuries which all required surgery I feel your pain.
My advice would be to keep with your private physio who understands your needs and will accelerate your rehab as much as you can tolerate and is safe for your injury. NHS physios are fantastic however are functioning in a system where they are unable to deliver appropriate levels of care. Its not their fault.

I would also recommend that you get clear instructions on what you exercises you can do in your own time and what limits you can push yourself.
I’ve had excellent results from all my injuries which were severe but I became completely obsessed with them.
I broke and dislocated my shoulder and had reconstruction surgery.
Before your bone has healed enough you need to perform ppassive exercises – ie not under your own power.
When the bone has healed enough you can increase this to asssisted active and then fully active exercises.
There are many simple ways you can do your own physio at home or in your office daily – I did this multiple times per day.
It would be innappropriate for me to recommend things for you here, but I highly recommend that you get this advice from your private physio.

Good luck mate I will watch this thread with interest.

NHS physios are fantastic however are functioning in a system where they are unable to deliver appropriate levels of care.

Rubbish. Utter claptrap.

If that was the case we’d all be struck off and there would be no NHS physios. I wish folk sould stop spouting such utter drivel, it’s really quite offensive to my profession.

As an ex NHS consultant orthopaedic surgeon I feel I am qualified to pass judgement on the feedback my patients gave me.
The excellent physios who I worked with were incapable of providing appropriate care due to the political and economic environment they were constrained within.
They were overworked, underpaid and under-resourced.
As I said earlier its not their fault.

hugor. With any post like this,it’s always necessary to filter the advice given. Thank you for the great advice, which is on topic and has certainly made it through the filter.

despite this post, I am actually very pleased with my Physio: she will see me practically at my convinience and being a fellow mountain biker understands the environment my shoulder will be put back into. You’re right, there’s always a temptation to do too much (though a good physio will recognise this too) and I’m listening carefully to the qualified advice I’m getting.

Since don’t know your full medical details bit hard to be specific but have a word with your physio and see what else you can do to try and maintain fitness in the rest of your body while you recovery from the injury.

For example if i was seeing someone with your injury, if able, i would have them on stationary bike, treadmill, ect, also look at body weight lower leg exercises such as single leg squats and the variations. Bridging (without using your arms!) or gym ball base exercises can also be usful.

It is offend a problem that when one part of the body is injured the rest becomes quite de-condition, which is a shame as normally with the right instruction it can be prevented to a certain degree.

As for your arm I expect you are just going to have to be patient, something most of as are not very good at.

All the best with your recovery.

hugor – that doesnt sound like any physio department that I have came across. Maybe the system just works better in Scotland, or has changed since you worked in the NHS.