Achilles Rupture - Calgarypuck Forums - The Unofficial Calgary Flames Fan Community

secol · 01-29-2016, 01:36 PM

Just venting on my situation. Tore my Achilles on Monday night playing basketball, went to a hospital the same night and got a temporary splint and got an ultrasound appointment the following day along with a followup at the hospital.
When I went in for the followup to discuss my ultrasound, it was confirmed that I tore the Achilles and I was referred to the Cast Clinic to see an orthopedic surgeon. The earliest appointment available ended up being the following Monday (one week post injury) and from my research over this week, it is ideal to get surgery within 48 hours of the injury depending on how severe the rupture is. So I try to get more information from the hospital on the severity of my rupture and am basically told either I request the information and get it mailed to me in a month or to consult my family doctor/surgeon. Meanwhile I'm still stuck in a makeshift splint to hold my foot in a plantarflex position.
What sucks even more is from my research on CP, it seems as though other cases in the city were treated way quicker and it didn't take a week to consult a surgeon.

dubc80 · 01-29-2016, 02:24 PM

Weird. I tore my Achilles May 2013. Went to the Rockyview Emergency dept and had surgery later that day.

Where did you go?

CaptainCrunch · 01-29-2016, 02:45 PM

The wait times for surgeries are pretty brutal. I had a friend who had his shoulder blown up to the point where he couldn't lift his arm above his shoulder, was in constant pain, and couldn't use his arm for much.

It only took 2 years for him to get his surgery.

14 · 01-29-2016, 03:05 PM

This is not too unusual. I ruptured mine July 2014. I ruptured mine playing football on July 27th and did not see the surgeon for consult until Aug 6th.

I wanted surgery but elected to not do surgery after I was given all of the info and did a lot of research myself. That is almost the norm now in Calgary based on a lot of research at U of C. You would have been scheduled for surgery right away if after the ultrasound they saw that the tendon had separated and gone up into the calf. Most Achilles injuries rupture like spaghetti strands and 'stay' in a relative close area to where the rupture took place.

I am happy to give you any info you need and discuss anything you want to know. I have fully recovered and am playing all sports again: football, hockey, squash, etc. I can give you a lot of info on recovery input. I kept a detailed Diary of my ordeal. It helped me mentally a lot. PM me if you would like to connect.

In the meantime, take a deep breath and know that you will fully recover. Do not put any weight on the leg or try to move the ankle. Ice and elevation are all your friends right now.

You will be fine.

cracher · 01-29-2016, 03:17 PM

Assuming it's a complete rupture, I would disagree with the 48h you mentioned. As long as you get it fixed within a couple of weeks, it's not much harder to fix from a technical standpoint. Sometimes, it's even easier at the 2 week mark because some of hematoma within the paratenon calms down by then. If I were not on a layover/leaving the country at the moment, I'd offer to answer more questions or find a way to get it done faster.

Ryan Coke · 01-29-2016, 03:37 PM

I will just add that I had a neighbour recently go through this, and were initially given similar advice....to wait and make an appt for a week or whatever. Fortunately they have some friends in medicine who were able to arrange a second opinion, and they reinforced the importance of a quick surgery if it was completely ruptured.

Turns out it wasn't completely ruptured so they decided to leave it without surgery, but if you can get sort sort of second opinion I would encourage it.

Flamescuprun2018 · 01-29-2016, 04:51 PM

I ruptured mine from tennis in July 2012. Went into a fiberglass cast the next day.

I elected to go with casting rather than surgery. There is a major shift toward conservative (casting) over surgery amongst Calgary orthopedic surgeons since tendon heals back quite nicely without surgery.

Full recovery but took many months. No scar. I rarely remember it ever happened now.

Just need to be careful with the tendon as it heals. Don't stretch it violently. Re-rupture is common in first 18 weeks. Then uncommon.

Fiberglass cast for 4-6 weeks...then special boot with wedges...then normal shoe with lots of physio.

chummer · 01-29-2016, 06:07 PM

This thread makes me cringe. Good luck.

secol · 01-29-2016, 06:44 PM

went to sheldon chumir at night, so i felt happy i was able to get ultrasound the next day.

looking back, i should've been more proactive and tried to get a second opinion or ask for a referral to another surgeon. now it's the weekend so monday is pretty much my first available date anyways

i'd be fine with going non surgical, but the problem is i don't even have anything close to a cast right now and as a result it's hard to rest my foot on anything without it turning/shifting a bit. right now i literally have an ankle splint that goes from the top of my foot, up to mid calf and another splint wrapped around that one in the middle of my foot, held together by bandages

also i'm concerned that every morning when i wake up, i can feel the blood rushing to my foot and the pain comes back. sometimes it's almost as bad as when i injured it. just so weird to feel it pulsating (like a bag being overflowing with pressure building). i can move my toes so i know circulation is still adequate

BlurstOfTimes · 01-29-2016, 08:45 PM

I had a complete rupture of my left achilles playing soccer last June. It happened late at night so I didn't go to emergency room as I didn't think it was that bad. it hurt but wasn't as painful as I though an achilles rupture would be. I made an appointment with a podiatrist for the next morning. She confirmed that it was fully ruptured. She put me in a air cast boot with wedges and booked me into an ultrasound for that afternoon and the emergency room at Peter Lougheed to get the temporary splint. That all happened on a Friday. I met with the surgeon, Dr. Le, Monday morning at the Peter Lougheed cast clinic. He is only there on Mondays. He took a look and thought I'd be fine in a full cast and it would heal on it's own.

After 3 weeks in the cast I was put back into the air boot with wedges and everything looked good. The next day I lost my balance and put my foot down really hard and re-popped the achilles. I called the surgeon and he get me into an ultrasound with one of the doctors for the Stamps and Olympic team (can't remember his name). He confirmed that it re-popped but only partially. I had surgery 2 days later.

I got around on a 3 wheel "off road" knee scooter I bought on Amazon. I also bought an iWalk 2.0 to peg leg around the house. Crutches just sucked. I was actually able to mow the yard using the iWalk. All the mobility devices were out of pocket expenses but I'll get some back when I sell them.

I was non-weight bearing from early June until mid-August. Then in the air cast and wedges until mid-September or so. It's been a long recovery period and still tightens up on me. I still can't run on it but can go skiing (solid boot doesn't let it move), skate, and cycle.

BlurstOfTimes · 01-29-2016, 08:48 PM

Secol, let me know if you need an air cast, wedges, scooter, crutches, or iWalk and we can work something out.

FurnaceFace · 02-05-2016, 05:06 PM

I have a coworker going through this. Blew his on a Tuesday or Wednesday, was in for surgery on the weekend I believe. See what he goes through I don't wish that injury on anyone.

Johnny199r · 02-05-2016, 07:35 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by secol

Just venting on my situation. Tore my Achilles on Monday night playing basketball, went to a hospital the same night and got a temporary splint and got an ultrasound appointment the following day along with a followup at the hospital.
When I went in for the followup to discuss my ultrasound, it was confirmed that I tore the Achilles and I was referred to the Cast Clinic to see an orthopedic surgeon. The earliest appointment available ended up being the following Monday (one week post injury) and from my research over this week, it is ideal to get surgery within 48 hours of the injury depending on how severe the rupture is. So I try to get more information from the hospital on the severity of my rupture and am basically told either I request the information and get it mailed to me in a month or to consult my family doctor/surgeon. Meanwhile I'm still stuck in a makeshift splint to hold my foot in a plantarflex position.
What sucks even more is from my research on CP, it seems as though other cases in the city were treated way quicker and it didn't take a week to consult a surgeon.

Sorry to hear about your injury. Wishing you a speedy recovery.

secol · 02-16-2016, 11:03 AM

So I'm supposed to get a boot next week so I'm starting to look at physiotherapist options. Anybody have recommendations on somebody who deals with Achilles rupture and the non surgical treatment?

flames_fan_down_under · 03-26-2016, 05:45 PM

Ruptured my achilles yesterday afternoon playing football with my friends. Couldn't be worse timing as I am wild land firefighter and I was gearing up to get back to work in April.

I have my temporary cast on and am meeting my orthopaedic surgeon on Tuesday or Wednesday. I am going to elect to have surgery I think.

Secol how are you holding up?

Anyone else go through this? I have been on my crutches for a day and I am already going crazy.

I am also trying to get onto municipal fire departments and this puts the kibosh on any possible applications in the next few months.

secol · 03-26-2016, 06:38 PM

About to start physio next week.

I would say do pretty extensive research on surgery vs non-surgery. In the end I was a bit more aggressive than what the specialist prescribed which is a good thing. Also there is a small chance if you opt for surgery that your tendon can be over-lengthened which is really bad and requires longer surgery and recovery to fix.

In the end I'm glad to have gone with non-surgery so I don't need to worry about the wound. I'm able to limp around without the boot now and just started driving as well (just around two months). Calf raises are basically impossible, even sitting calf raises are tough. Really need to build the strength back up since it's affecting my gait.

If you do go with surgery, make sure you educate yourself on the types of repair options available. There's an Achilles rupture group on Facebook which is solid. Lots of video blogs and regular blogs out there as well. I hope you get a good specialist because I found that out of my four appointments with one specialist, I had three different doctors which defeats the purpose of follow-up appointments.

secol · 03-26-2016, 06:40 PM

Oh and definitely start calling health care shops about renting knee scooters if you don't want to crutch around too much. I was unable to get one since all the shops I called were all out and by the time I could get one it was only going to be a short period of time that I would need it

flames_fan_down_under · 03-26-2016, 08:18 PM

Thanks for the great information Secol. I will check the Facebook group and start educating myself some more.

I did a bit of research on the doctor I am seeing next week and it seems he has a great reputation with these sorts of surgeries.

So far all the doctors and nurses that I have seen have been nothing but incredible. Truly fortunate to have such a wonderful health care system in this country.

BlurstOfTimes · 03-28-2016, 01:26 PM

I've got a knee scooter and iWalk 2.0 for sale if you want them. PM me.

http://www.amazon.com/Terrain-KneeRo.../dp/B00DCYN8UK

http://www.iwalk-free.com/

I used the scooter for getting to/from work on the bus and going on "walks" around the local parks. I rented one from a local store but the small hard wheels would get stuck in ruts and didn't work well on poorly maintained sidewalks or gravel. I upgraded to the "offroad" scooter and added a training wheel so it wouldn't wobble so much (3 wheels vs 4 on the rental)

I used the iWalk around the house and was able to mow the yard with it.

The crutches were just horrible.

secol. I may have forgot to PM you about the therapist. I go to Lifemark - Calgary Sports Therapy on 7sth Street and 11th Avenue. I'm pretty much done with it now. Have a final follow up next month.

I was able to go skiing recently and didn't have any problems. I can do some light jogging but the Achilles is still tight and I'm only to about 90% of full range of motion. Most of this is my fault for not keeping up with exercises and stretching.

secol · 03-28-2016, 01:32 PM

I was looking at the Lifemark in Gulf since that is closer to where I work. In the end I went with a physio in the NW since I have the flexibility of going during weekends

I'll be creating my own program based on various blogs and videos of people in similar situations at similar timelines, and supplement that with the physio while maintaining my increased collagen intake. Unfortunately, despite being the same injury. By going non-surgical, it appears that AHS will not cover any physio so I will have to go through private (really think this is a flaw in the system since it's the same injury and physio is required in both cases)