Recovery from a broken ankle

Hi all, I broke my ankle 6 weeks ago and had it pinned. Cast due off next week and I’m just wondering if anyone has had a similar injury and what sort of recovery time can I Expect? I’m fairly fit, don’t smoke and have a well balanced diet

Cheers for reading

Jay

I broke my ankle in June 2008 – still got a plate in there today – as I get reminded every time I dip it in cold water (sea, lake, river, etc)

I was out for a LONG time – taking it easy for 3-4 months after the cast came off. Started out doing road rides to build up the strength, then slowly ventured off-road.

One tip – buy one of these for it! -> http://www.skatehut.co.uk/brands/pro-tec/pro-tec_ips_ankle_brace.htm

My wife broke her ankle 13 months ago and while the bones healed up nicely (6 weeks in plaster)she still has a variety of painful soft tissue problems and lack of ankle mobility. To be honest she hasn’t been very keen on physio stuff which may have been a factor so I would advise you to get some good physio and stick with it.

I broke mine about 2 years ago.

Get a good physio, get a wobble board, a goal and speak to your consultant and let him know you want to push yourself to recover rather than sit back and hope for the best.

You need things that push the full movement – which cycling doesn’t (I was able to cycle to work before I could walk without crutches – I strapped them to my backpack).

But in all these cases it is best to do with professional advice rather than from here.

I broke mine in Jan and rode the London to Paris in June, which was my goal – a result I think. Great to have something to work towards.

Yes, you have to push the recovery along a bit – make sure you do the stuff the physio says, and tell them that you want to get back to how you were (or better).
It took me weeks of bending the ankle joint to get full mobility back, and then the daily (or twice daily) standing on tip toes type exercises, plus endless ankle wobbling whilst sat in mtgs etc.

There is no generic answer to “how long will it take” as each injury is different, but I was lucky enough to have a boot rather than a cast that allowed me to move the ankle during the first few weeks. You’ll have to work at the recovery to get all the strength back (and don’t stop when you’re nearly there – keep going past this point to get yourself even stronger.)

Thanks for the advice

Here’s mine 😀

Why do they screw the fib and tib together?

To stop rotating my ankle.

The screw (diastasis screw) was removed after 6 weeks, then I was in a cast for another 3 weeks.

I had a spiral fracture apparently!

I broke mine 6 years ago, 6 weeks in plaster another 6 weeks before I could go back to work and do some gentle riding it probably took me the best part of a year to get my nerve fully back on the MTB and I’ve never regained full movement.
It could have been a lot worse though as I was on a solo evening ride and initially I couldn’t get a phone signal.

It all depends on the injury. Some heal well, others don’t. Depends how much of a mess you made.

My dad bust his in his youth, suffered no problems afterwards. I bust mine ten years ago – it hurts now as I type.

xiphon – the ankle support you recommend, would it protect your ankle against the rubbing of the screws that connect the plate. My mum has a plate in her ankle and suffers from extreme cold and rubbing of the screws against boots/welly’s etc. Would the ankle support help lessen this rubbing and help keep the ankle joint warm in the cold winters?

I broke mine nearly 10 years ago. It’s still visibly swollen and I don’t have full mobility, but it’s good enough. I sometimes get aches in it too, mainly when I’m sitting with it in an uncomfortable position – it’s happier when moving.

I’ve never had issues with the pins rubbing thankfully. And I’ve run marathons on it so it doesn’t stop me doing stuff, But I’m nearly always aware of it.