thecubster’s AchillesBlog

I had my surgery on Friday for the correction of my Haglund’s Deformity.  My doctor reshaped the bone to remove the spur and also transferred a tendon from my big toe to repair the damage to the Achilles tendon.  He had hoped to be able to just remove some of the tendon but there was too much damage from 7+ years of this problem.  After surgery my right leg is in a cast below the knee.  I am non-weight bearing on the right leg at least until my next appointment on Nov 1st.  This weekend I had a lot of pain that I did not expect.  I was expecting some pain but not this much.  I was taking oxycodone every four hours to keep it under control.  I kept my foot elevated all weekend.  I didn’t even get out of bed on Sat (POD 1).  Well I am happy to report that by Sun morning the pain was better and I was able to spread out the oxycodone.  I even got up a few times and moved around the house.

As of today (POD 3) the pain is much better.  I was able to get up unassisted and move around the house for a while.  The problems I am still having is getting used to the crutches and being able to balance on them while having the range of motion in my arms to be able to reach for things.  Someone suggested in an earlier comment to get a knee walker and I can certainly see the benefits of this.

Tomorrow my goal is to get in the shower.  I bought a cast protector from Walgreen’s and look forward to trying it for the first time and not just taking a sponge bath balancing on one foot at the sink.

Thanks for all the support from everyone who commented on my previous posts.

I was wondering if anyone had any ideas/suggestions on showering with a cast on the lower leg or ankle.  I’ll be having my surgery on the 21st and could be in a cast for 2-6 weeks depending on how extensive the damage is.

Thanks for any assistance

I have been diagnosed with Haglund’s Deformity in both feet since 2007.  I was first diagnosed with Achilles Tendonitis in 2004 that never really went away.  After seeing an orthopedic Dr in 2007 I was advised not to have surgery because of the long recovery time and my Dr did not feel it was severe enough.  The symptoms I have been having are pain and stiffness along my Achilles Tendon that restricts my ability to push off when taking a step.  Also when waking up in the morning and after any sort of activity, the pain and stiffness is much worse.  Of course this is a very short version of the last 7 years

Recently I have seen a new orthopedic Dr that is a foot and ankle specialist.  At the first appointment he confirmed the diagnosis of Haglund’s by looking at X Rays and said that surgery is recommended.  His concern was that the X Ray showed what looked like calcification or ossification of the Achilles Tendon.  I had an MRI after the appointment and now tomorrow I have my follow up to determine what is needed surgically.  There is the possibility he might have to pull some of the tendon that is responsible for flexing my big toe to repair the Achilles.

I was wondering if anyone else has had this type of surgery and if you had any advice for me or any information that you found helpful.