fresh tibial plateau fracture :-(

[susun]

Hi everybody
Just 5 days ago (and it had to be the New Years Eve!!!) I had a skiing accident (the first run of the day) and ended up with right tibial plateau fracture! Fortunately it looks like it's non-displaced. I was taken off the slopes to ER, placed in full leg immobilizer and told not to place any weight on my right leg... also to follow up with ortho. I made an appointment to see an orthopedist that came highly recommended. The only thing is that the appointment is in 4 days and the injury was 5 days ago. I'm not sure if it's OK to wait for that long and if I'm being stupid for not finding somebody else to see earlier. I have been very carefull keeping my leg raised, iced, immobilized, and not putting any weight on. So the question is: is it ok to wait 1 week to see an ortho surgeon if I'm keeping my leg immobilized and non-weight bearing? And how easy is it to displace a non-displaced fx like this?
Thanks for any comments!

 

[ski diva]

I have no answer for you, BUT I would assume you told the ortho's office when the accident occurred when you made the appointment, and they would've gotten you in sooner, if they thought it was necessary. Again, I have no idea. If you're worried, maybe you should call them tomorrow (Monday) and see what they say. Or call another ortho and see what they say.

 

[dloveski]

Agree with SD. But, go ahead and call the ER back and talk to the doctors there to be sure, given the radiology report, that the wait is not detrimental. Sounds like you are doing the right things, ice, elevation, and no weight bearing and you do have a brace.

If diagnosed properly, the ortho may not do a whole lot more but will verify the radiology report and hopefully will get you a PT for a recovery plan.

Good luck and sorry about your injury.

 

[abc]

Second dloveski's suggestion to call the ER doctor and ask if the wait matters.

When my Mom fell and crack her jaw, the ER doctor disagree with the radiologist's diagnose. So the ER doctor recomend a consultation with a specialist ASAP. It turned out to be important. A mis-diagnose (by the radiologist at the ER) in that case would have seriously impared the recovery since bones starts growing back pretty quickly. It was fortunate the specialist spotted that (with a full x-ray work-up) and treated accordingly.

If there's little doubt of the diagnose of the injury, a week's delay isn't that big of a deal. (also, leg bones grow a little slower than jaw bones, I think) The ER doctor should be able to give you that much assurance.

 

[Telluride Ski Babe]

I agree you should call the ER doctor, however I also think the wait is probably no big deal. Last year when I had a four-part proximal humerus fracture I didn't see my ortho until four days after my accident. It didn't make a lick of difference. He scheduled surgery for the next day, and told me they would have needed the swelling to go down before surgery, so the wait was really irrelevant.

 

[Ski Fanatic Mom]

Hi Susun
I am so sorry about your tibial plateau fx. I was there last Feb. One thing you should know is that this is a serious fracture. DO NOT PUT ANY WEIGHT ON IT, or you will be looking at major surgery if you displace it!
Mine was also a non-displaced fracture and I was on crutches for 5 months - 3 of which were total non weight bearing followed by another 2 transitioning to partial weight bearing.
By the time I got into see the ortho after the ER and had the MRI and CT scan, it was 10 days before I had the final diagnosis. This is just the way the medical profession operates these days - unless it's a life and death scenario.
The tibial plateau is a major weight bearing zone - care needs to be given. Do not put any weight on it!!!!
Good luck to you and keep me posted.
Bernadette

 

[Slidergirl]

Sorry to hear about your accident. We're dropping like flies around here.

Definitely keep up the regimen you have going - ice, elevation and NO WEIGHT BEARING. I know it's hard to keep off the leg, but it's extremely important. I wanted to get weight on my leg quickly, but my ortho drummed it into my head that it was a bad idea. It felt like it took forever, but I followed his orders to the letter. He said I healed better than he anticipated.

Keep us up to date on what happens.

 

[susun]

Hey guys,

Thank you so much for your replies. Very much appreciated. It's good to hear from people that have been there :-) I'll call my doc today and make sure I'm doing the right thing in the meantime. I can't wait for Thursday to get the final Dx and possibly get some kind of plan of recovery. Sitting on my bum all day is driving me crazy. Not used to it at all. I can't imagine the next 3 or so months! And how about the pain?? It's pretty uncomfortable, still, even with my leg just resting. I'm taking percocet and ibuprofen. Even my hands hurt from crutches. Hopefully that gets better. I'M A MESS! :Cry:
Thanks guys

 

[Ski Fanatic Mom]

Oh susun.....I soooooo feel your pain, especially the hand part! Invest in some biking gloves. Trust me, after 1 month I had ulcers on the heels of my hands from all the weight going to that body part.

You have a painful injury. Take 2 percocet if necessary along with the ibuprofen in between. After a few weeks, the ibuprofen works better than the percocet. Did they say what part of the tibial plateau you fractured?

Sit tight! I used Wii bowling to help pass the time. I was even able to "ski" using the hand controls. If you don't have a Wii, maybe a "Get well" gift?????

Unfortunately, the only thing that will help you now, is time....so sit tight, catch up on your reading, take up knitting, or find a craft to pass the time. Feel free to "ventilate" when necessary. I sent you a private message so you can write to me there if you want.

HANG IN THERE!!!!! :(

 

[Slidergirl]

crutch fleece

When I was on my crutches for 4 months last year, I found a good website for very cool crutch fleece - Broken Beauties ( just all one word and add the .com). Their "crutch buns" are great! One cover for the underarm part and one cover for the hand part. I got the leopard print.
I also got some fun stickers to put on my crutches. Hey, you gotta live with the crutches for weeks, so why not spice them up!!!

 

[susun]

Hello ladies,

uuuuuuuuu crutch buns sound great at this point. My hands are killing me!!! They are more bruised than anything.
Anyway, some GOOD NEWS! I saw my ortho... He said I had the best scenario of a tibial plateau fracture possible, non-displaced and very "clean" break. He is hoping for three weeks of non-wt bearing all together, which means that I have almost only one week left, and then we'll start toe touching etc. This is providing that the MRI is not too bad. If so, the non-wt bearing time will be adjusted, but I don't see it being extended for too long. Anyway, I thought that was great news :-)
I do have a question for you guys though... How long does the swelling stick around? Mine seems to be the same. I have hinged knee brace on now so I can start bending my knee but my lower leg seems to be soooo disconected, especially with bending the knee. It feels as if there is not one ligament connecting it. I don't know if it feels like this bcs of the pressure of effusion/swelling, or am I feeling some major ligament damage. I'm hoping to do MRI in the next week.

 

[deserat]

Yikes - I feel for you - I thought my ACL stuff was a PITA - as for the 'disassociated' feeling - I'm guessing some nueropathways may have been disrupted or the swelling may be affecting that - so it feels like nothing is there even though you can see it. I know that there is part of my shin and the inner part of my foot don't have the type of feeling I used to have - a bit numb.

Swelling, as I understand it, is different for everyone - it's your body's healing response and until your body thinks it's healed, it will swell (white blood cell response). Ice and Ibuprofen are ways to minimize it.

Good luck and great to hear the diagnosis was a better one than originally anticipated.

 

[Jerez]

Me 2. hairline fracture of the tibial plateau on new years eve day. (with a side of acl & mcl sprain.) Sorry you're going through it. hope your MRI doesn't reveal anything more.

 

[nimbus]

Hi, Susun,
Sorry to hear about your injury. It sounds similar to what happened to my knee about 15 years ago; I was 38 at the time. I don't want to sound like a downer, but this is a serious injury and will take some time to heal.
That's great that you have a time-frame to start weight-bearing. Be sure to let your doc know if you have an increase in pain from doing so. When I started putting weight on my injured leg, I started feeling nerve "zingers" go down into my foot. This told my doc I needed more time off weight. My MRI showed a large bone bruise in the tibia, and bone bruises can be painful for quite a long time.
As for the swelling, broken bones always cause some bleeding at the site. Not sure how long it takes to go down--I don't remember now .
I hope you have a smoother course than I did, but I want you to know I have recovered completely and have not a bit of trouble from that knee 15 years later. I wish for you a complete recovery, too.
God bless.

 

[marge]

OMG! What a horrible injury. I'm so glad you got a decent report from ortho. I sure hope you can heal quickly. :pray

 

[tahoeskisister]

I suffered a tibial plateau fx about a week ago which seems similar to yours. I was wondering how your treatment and recovery were coming along.