Last July, I had my second surgery to take out a screw in my right foot. The surgery went well and my surgeon was happy with how my foot had healed. For two weeks, following my removal surgery, I wore a walking boot and my foot felt good (relatively speaking). I returned to the doctor at the end of the two weeks. Weight-bearing X-rays were taken of my foot, and I was told all looked well. The doctor cleared me to transfer into a supportive tennis shoe.
I was free for all of four days until I felt a dreaded popping sound in my right foot. It happened when I stood up. My heart immediately fell into my stomach. I knew what had happened. The next few hours the pain and swelling in my midfoot grew. I was in disbelief. How could this be happening to me again? I didn't do anything but stand up.
Two weeks went by until I was able to see the doctor. I explained the situation. He was as perplexed as me. Upon examination, he noticed some instability in my foot. It was clear to me that I was going to have to have surgery. However, my doctor first wanted to go the conservative route. Five weeks I spent in a non-weight bearing boot after which I revisited my doctor and told him I still had considerable pain... So surgery it was. My third one in less than a year.
The surgery (Sept. 2016) was different than my previous one due to the different location of instability. I had ORIF (Open Reduction Internal Fixation) of my first metatarsal, medial cuneiform, and second cuneiform with one plate and four screws. The first week of recovery was extremely painful and filled with many hours of drug induced stooper. My recall of that first week is like attempting to remember a dream. In total, I spent six weeks in a non-weight bearing boot, using my knee scooter for transportation.
Right foot ORIF Sept. 2016
Since I had already lived this type of lifestyle in the past, it was almost second nature to me (not sure that is a good thing). I was nearly pain-free after the first week of recovery, which was a plus, but the physical and psychological toll of the injury and recovery weighed heavily on me. One injury, surgery, and recovery of the Lisfrac variety is enough to beat down a person of the soundest mind and strongest body. Three surgeries and recoveries in a relatively short period is just villainous.
Three months after surgery (late Nov. 2016) I emerged with positive thoughts. My feet were feeling well and I was walking (slowly) in a pair of real shoes. However, no more than a week of walking on my two free feet, misery struck once again. This time it was my left foot. I was living a Ground Hog Day scenario.
To give a recap: My left foot had previously had many problems of its own. From Aug. 2014 until Aug. 2015, I had a Lisfranc injury that was misdiagnosed. The long period between diagnosis and eventual surgery (ORIF with a metal plate and five screws in Oct. 2015) made my injury and recovery particularly complex. The prognosis for Lisfranc injuries is not the best unless treatment is initiated quickly. I had the metal plate and screw removed in Feb. 2016.
The pain in my left foot grew over the course of a couple of days until I couldn't walk on it any longer. In my gut, I knew something wasn't right but there wasn't much I could do at the time. I had to be patient. Fast forward eight weeks until January; I have seen my doctor, got an MRI, and got a cortisone shot into first TMT joint. My foot is still in a lot of pain. The MRI shows bone edema, post-traumatic arthritis, and soft tissue edema in my midfoot. These findings are not good news. It means I only have one option to hopefully walk again without pain. That option is the fusion (not nuclear) of my first TMT and intertarsal joint in my left foot. If fusion sounds scary, that's because it kinda is. There is no undoing a fusion. Nonetheless, it can allow me to return to a semi-normal life... So fusion it is for me. In another month, I will add a fourth surgery in a year to my tally. I don't know what is going to happen. At this point, it all just feels ridiculous. The good news is my surgery punch card only needs one more punch and I get one free...
