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slump
Since 16 Sep 2007
26 Posts
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Fri Apr 24, 15 11:29 am Torn achilles |
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Wanted to see if anyone else has any experience with a torn Achilles tendon. Was gone to Maui on vacation and my wife tore her tendon while we were playing pickleball. Not good! Cut our vacation a little short and the Doctor here is saying surgery and 8 wks in a cast. My wife is very active and is dreading being laid up, does anyone have any helpful insight they might be able to share?
Thank you! |
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jerp
Since 22 Feb 2013
453 Posts
Obsessed
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Fri Apr 24, 15 11:42 am |
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its torn completely or just strained?
I had had an Achilles issue (tendonitis? I guess its called something else now) for about 6 months and tried everything. In the end I went to "The Kor" which specialize in getting people back on the field. They fixed it in a month or so but the fix is unique to the person.
my issue was mobility to the front of the foot. they watch you run and take measurements to understand what led to the issue etc.
feel free to PM me for more info. |
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ldhr
Since 21 Jul 2009
1487 Posts
Hood River
XTreme Poster
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Fri Apr 24, 15 11:46 am |
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A torn achilles would not be treated the same as tendonitis.
There's 4 levels of severity from slight tearing to completely severed and requires grafting.
You don't specify how severe the tear is - so it's hard to comment about your wife's treatment and recovery time....
Depending on the severity of the tear - the prognosis you stated seems typical.
type I: partial ruptures <= 50% typically treated with conservative management
type II: complete rupture with tendinous gap <= 3 cm typically treated with end-end anastomosis
type III: complete rupture with tendinous gap 3 to 6 cm often requires tendon/synthetic graft
type IV: complete rupture with defect of > 6 cm (neglected ruptures) often requires tendon/synthetic graft and gastrocnemius recession |
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Bargeslayer
Since 08 Jul 2012
100 Posts
Stoked
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Fri Apr 24, 15 12:23 pm |
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There is actually new, very strong evidence that even complete tears can be treated non-operatively with equivalent outcomes in terms of re-rupture rates and functional strength.
Here's the link
http://jbjs.org/content/92/17/2767.long
If she were to not have surgery, she would still be laid up but would avoid all the potential issues with surgery (infection, bleeding etc). |
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skideeppow
Since 26 Aug 2011
519 Posts
Addicted
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Fri Apr 24, 15 12:53 pm |
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Try and see what route Aksel Lund Svindel went. He ruptured his Achilles and raced in World Championships in Beaver Creek. Pretty speedy recovery.
Pretty nasty injury, can put you down for a long time and results in some swelling that is hard to control.
Pretty sure with Aksel, it was all about the rehab. Game Ready for inflammation. |
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jaksavage
Since 02 Dec 2009
216 Posts
hood river
Stoked
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Sat Apr 25, 15 7:41 am my take |
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I popped my achilles pushing a car off a trailer. Felt like I got hit with a baseball bat or broke my leg. I looked down and expected to see it hyper extended. Hurt like hell.
My foot turned black after a few days.
It was painfull walking and months later if I pushed off with my toes on that foot it hurt a lot. I walked like the penguin for a long time.
I never went to the doc...no insurance, and it eventually quit hurting but took months.
Now it is obvious that my range of motion with the damaged tendon is greater. I can stretch that toe toward my knee much further than the undamaged side.
Hope hers is getting better. _________________ My wife kites more than me. |
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airon^
Since 07 Aug 2013
290 Posts
Durango
Obsessed
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Sat Apr 25, 15 9:30 am listen to this guy, he's Ortho and smart... |
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[quote="Westside barge slayer"]There is actually new, very strong evidence that even complete tears can be treated non-operatively with equivalent outcomes in terms of re-rupture rates and functional strength. _________________ surf the san juans |
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slump
Since 16 Sep 2007
26 Posts
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Mon Apr 27, 15 8:22 am |
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Thank you for all the responses and information, it was all helpful! |
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Sasquatch
Since 09 Mar 2005
2083 Posts
PNW
Bigfoot
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Mon Apr 27, 15 10:32 am Re: Torn achilles |
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slump wrote: | my wife tore her tendon while we were playing pickleball. Not good! Cut our vacation a little short and the Doctor here is saying surgery and 8 wks in a cast. My wife is very active and is dreading being laid up. . . |
Wow and bummer! Second torn Achilles tendon story I've heard in the last 3 weeks where pickleball was the activity responsible for the injury. Granted the lady that I know who hurt her tendon was an out of shape tennis player who was in her 50's and overweight.
Who would of thought such a condensed form of the game of tennis would be so damaging to the body? |
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kieran
Since 06 Jul 2011
45 Posts
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Mon Apr 27, 15 12:00 pm |
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I ruptured my achilles playing ultimate 2+ years ago. Had a surgical repair:
2 weeks in a full cast
6 weeks in a walking boot
6 months of intense rehab to get back to anything active
6 more months of focused strength and mobility training to fully recover.
It sucks.
My gap was ~2cm, which meant I could have gone non-surgical, but the consensus was that I'd only get to 95% strength through a non-surgical approach, which just wasn't good enough for me.
Free healthcare tho. |
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jerp
Since 22 Feb 2013
453 Posts
Obsessed
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Mon Apr 27, 15 1:00 pm |
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Once she does get it fixed and I’m sure she will, my best advice is to come up a decent stretching/rolling routine to do before and after any activity. I flared up my Achilles two weeks ago rushing to go out kiting at the ES. I normally have a whole stretching routine I do before any activity but opted to not do it that day as I was in a rush….typical… The same stretching/rolling routine cleared up the strain quickly. Was able to hike Syncline yesterday without aggravating it or any pain.
PM me if you would like the routine |
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drtaamc
Since 24 Jul 2008
120 Posts
Stoked
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Tue Apr 28, 15 10:06 am |
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Tore my achilles tendon playing basketball 14 years ago the last day of February. Complete tear, don't know what the gap was, but I'm certain they did an end to end anastomosis. I'm a veterinarian and I've actually done the same surgery in dogs. Surgery within a week. Cast for about 2 weeks...until I took it off due to discomfort. Walking boot for a month or two. Started rehab as soon as possible and was windsurfing on a Maui vacation the last half of June. I was 3 months shy of my 40th birthday when it happened. The tendon has not given my trouble since and feels more solid than the other...albeit it's about twice the size. Still skiing, kiting, mtn biking, hiking etc... with no issues. Good luck.
Stay away from those court sports! |
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