Wife in 5th week of LisFranc fracture/left foot....help!

My husband fell of the roof 2 weeks ago and landed on his feet on the cement. He suffered the Lisfranc fracture to his left foot and shattered the heel of his right! My husband is typically a work a holic, so you can imagine what this is doing to him. Right now he is stuck in a wheel chair if he wants to go anywhere. Around the house he wears knee pads to crawl about like a baby! I've tried to keep his spirits up and get him to do minor chores around the house to make him feel useful. I think it's really starting to get to him though... So...I feel your pain, but think about it...it really could be much worse!!
Sybil

IT SURE IS AMAZING HOW MANY PEOPLE OF ALL AGES CAN HAVE THIS INJURY. I MUST SAY IF YOU ARE READING THIS I’M SORRY IT HAPPENED TO YOU AS IT DID TO ME ON SEPTEMBER 03, 2006 WHILE SURFING IN THE OUTER BANKS OF NC.

I WAS TAKEN TO THE ER IMMEDIATELY TO BE EVALUATED. WITHIN 2 HOURS I WAS DIAGONISED WITH LISFRANC FRACTURE ON MY LEFT FOOT. I HAD DISLOCATED ALL 5 METATARSALS. I HAD TO WAIT 2 WEEKS FOR SURGERY TO ALLOW THE SWELLING TO SUBSIDE. THOSE WERE THE LONGEST 2 WEEKS OF MY LIFE. I HAD SURGERY ON SEPTEMBER 18, 2006.

I HAD BEEN SCHEDULED FOR A 2-2.5 HOUR SURGERY. WHEN I AWOKE IT HAD BEEN 5+ HOURS. MY PHYSICIAN SAID IT WAS ONE OF THE WORST LISFRANC FRACTURES SHE HAD EVER SEEN. I RECEIVED 3 PINS AND 4 SCREWS TO HOLD EVERYTHING BACK IN PLACE. THE PINS SUPPORTED THE SMALLER TOES/BONES WHILE THE SCREWS ARE SUPPORTING THE BIGGER TOES/BONES.

SIX WEEKS OF NO WEIGHT BEARING WITH A FIBERGLASS CAST. AT THIS POINT THE PINS WERE PULLED OUT. AMAZING NO PAIN WAS FELT ASSOCIATED WITH THE PINS BEING PULLED OUT. THE ONLY PAIN WAS WHEN THEY BROKE THE SKIN AWAY FROM THE PINS ALLOWING THEM TO GET A GRIP ON THE PINS. OUT OF THE FIBERGLASS CAST STRAIGHT INTO A WALKING BOOT. FELT GREAT TO FINALLY WASH MY LEG AND FOOT. THE NEXT DAY I STARTED PHYSICAL THERAPY (PT). ONE WEEK LATER I WAS ABLE TO WALK WITH THE BOOT AND ONE CRUTCH.

MY FOOT WAS SWOLLEN AND STILL IS BUT WHEN TRAUMA OF THIS MAGNITUDE IS EXPERIENCED IT’S JUST NOT GOING TO GO BACK TO NORMAL OVERNIGHT, HOPEFULLY ONE DAY IT WILL LOOK LIKE THE RIGHT FOOT. THE PT IS CONCENTRATED ON MY ANKLE. ONCE AGAIN WHEN YOU HAVE SERIOUS TRAUMA TO THE FOOT YOU ANKLE PAYS THE PRICE. MY ANKLE IS GETTING STRONGER AND TODAY (9 WEEKS POST SURGERY) I’M WALKING VERY SLOW WITHOUT A CRUTCH. I STILL NEED CRUTCHES WHEN I HAVE THE BOOT OFF WALKING AROUND THE HOUSE.

THE NEXT STEP WILL BE TO MOVE OUT OF THE BOOT INTO A SHOE WITH AN ARCH SUPPORT. SIX MONTHS POST SURGERY I WILL HAVE ANOTHER SURGERY TO HAVE THE 4 SCREWS PULLED OUT. I AM 36 YEARS OLD AND OPTIMISTIC ABOUT RECOVERY BASED ON MY HEALTH AND MY PHYSICIAN’S ADVICE OF SURFING AGAIN IN THE SUMMER OF 2007.

IF I CAN OFFER ANY ADVICE IT WOULD BE PARTICIPATE IN PHYSICAL THERAPY WHEN RECOMMENDED BY YOUR PHYSICIAN AND DO THE FOOT EXERCISES AT HOME WHILE YOU ARE CAMPED OUT ON THE COUCH, START TAKING GLUCOSAMINE, AND LOVE THE PEOPLE WHO TAKE CARE OF YOU.

Funny you had the accident on the same exact date as me, Sept 3rd 2006. However, my injury in only between the 1st and 2nd metatarsals. My foot surgeon is thinking about putting in 2 or 3 screws in my left foot. My surgery is scheduled for December 14th and should be and hour and a half tops. I will have an overnight stay in the hospital. Wish me luck.



I am so glad that I found this forum for people who have this similar injury as me.

ChocolateGirl wrote:

Guest wrote:

IT SURE IS AMAZING HOW MANY PEOPLE OF ALL AGES CAN HAVE THIS INJURY. I MUST SAY IF YOU ARE READING THIS I’M SORRY IT HAPPENED TO YOU AS IT DID TO ME ON SEPTEMBER 03, 2006 WHILE SURFING IN THE OUTER BANKS OF NC.

I WAS TAKEN TO THE ER IMMEDIATELY TO BE EVALUATED. WITHIN 2 HOURS I WAS DIAGONISED WITH LISFRANC FRACTURE ON MY LEFT FOOT. I HAD DISLOCATED ALL 5 METATARSALS. I HAD TO WAIT 2 WEEKS FOR SURGERY TO ALLOW THE SWELLING TO SUBSIDE. THOSE WERE THE LONGEST 2 WEEKS OF MY LIFE. I HAD SURGERY ON SEPTEMBER 18, 2006.

I HAD BEEN SCHEDULED FOR A 2-2.5 HOUR SURGERY. WHEN I AWOKE IT HAD BEEN 5+ HOURS. MY PHYSICIAN SAID IT WAS ONE OF THE WORST LISFRANC FRACTURES SHE HAD EVER SEEN. I RECEIVED 3 PINS AND 4 SCREWS TO HOLD EVERYTHING BACK IN PLACE. THE PINS SUPPORTED THE SMALLER TOES/BONES WHILE THE SCREWS ARE SUPPORTING THE BIGGER TOES/BONES.

SIX WEEKS OF NO WEIGHT BEARING WITH A FIBERGLASS CAST. AT THIS POINT THE PINS WERE PULLED OUT. AMAZING NO PAIN WAS FELT ASSOCIATED WITH THE PINS BEING PULLED OUT. THE ONLY PAIN WAS WHEN THEY BROKE THE SKIN AWAY FROM THE PINS ALLOWING THEM TO GET A GRIP ON THE PINS. OUT OF THE FIBERGLASS CAST STRAIGHT INTO A WALKING BOOT. FELT GREAT TO FINALLY WASH MY LEG AND FOOT. THE NEXT DAY I STARTED PHYSICAL THERAPY (PT). ONE WEEK LATER I WAS ABLE TO WALK WITH THE BOOT AND ONE CRUTCH.

MY FOOT WAS SWOLLEN AND STILL IS BUT WHEN TRAUMA OF THIS MAGNITUDE IS EXPERIENCED IT’S JUST NOT GOING TO GO BACK TO NORMAL OVERNIGHT, HOPEFULLY ONE DAY IT WILL LOOK LIKE THE RIGHT FOOT. THE PT IS CONCENTRATED ON MY ANKLE. ONCE AGAIN WHEN YOU HAVE SERIOUS TRAUMA TO THE FOOT YOU ANKLE PAYS THE PRICE. MY ANKLE IS GETTING STRONGER AND TODAY (9 WEEKS POST SURGERY) I’M WALKING VERY SLOW WITHOUT A CRUTCH. I STILL NEED CRUTCHES WHEN I HAVE THE BOOT OFF WALKING AROUND THE HOUSE.

THE NEXT STEP WILL BE TO MOVE OUT OF THE BOOT INTO A SHOE WITH AN ARCH SUPPORT. SIX MONTHS POST SURGERY I WILL HAVE ANOTHER SURGERY TO HAVE THE 4 SCREWS PULLED OUT. I AM 36 YEARS OLD AND OPTIMISTIC ABOUT RECOVERY BASED ON MY HEALTH AND MY PHYSICIAN’S ADVICE OF SURFING AGAIN IN THE SUMMER OF 2007.

IF I CAN OFFER ANY ADVICE IT WOULD BE PARTICIPATE IN PHYSICAL THERAPY WHEN RECOMMENDED BY YOUR PHYSICIAN AND DO THE FOOT EXERCISES AT HOME WHILE YOU ARE CAMPED OUT ON THE COUCH, START TAKING GLUCOSAMINE, AND LOVE THE PEOPLE WHO TAKE CARE OF YOU.

Funny you had the accident on the same exact date as me, Sept 3rd 2006. However, my injury in only between the 1st and 2nd metatarsals. My foot surgeon is thinking about putting in 2 or 3 screws in my left foot. My surgery is scheduled for December 14th and should be and hour and a half tops. I will have an overnight stay in the hospital. Wish me luck.

I am so glad that I found this forum for people who have this similar injury as me.

Glad to see other people doing sports have this injury as well. I suffered mine on sept 30th, while playing paintball. I have the removal surgery this friday, Dec 8th. Mine was a fracture of the 1st metatarsal, and a dislocatation of the 2nd and 3rd. (the 3rd was severly dislocated. the doc had to do an xray during surgery to find the bone) -- It seems like September was LisFranc Fracture month.

I wish you luck on your surgery on the 14th! Surfing Guest, I wish you the best of luck as well. hopefully we can all get back to normal lives relativly soon. It seems like our left feet are ahead of the healing game.

hello from Nashville, Tennessee
I took a bad fall out my back door last august. I not only fractured the foot but also tore tendons and did alot of damage to tissues and nerves. Ten days later I had surgery. I came out with no pins but several screws were placed in the foot . I am 52 years old and this injury has been tough on me. I would like to ask if anyone thats had this type of fracture has had to have a 2nd surgery where they go in and fuse the bones together?Everything I have read on this injury , people have had to go for bone fusion because of the severe pain and arthritis following this type of injury. replys welcome :O

I'm terribly sorry to hear about your wife's lisfranc fx. Mine happened 2 years ago, tripping over our dog, (who thought his name was Dammit Cooper!!!!) I had surgery that day; done incorrectly. The Dr. operated again the next week; again incorrectly. My husband and I decided to get a second opinion. The new Dr. IMMEDIANTLY removed the pins placed by the 1st Dr. He operated a few days later. Then after my doing fairly well after 6 months the decision was made to remove the hardware. Within a year my pain was horrible, I couldn't walk more than a city block. My foot was so swollen all the time I had to sit with it elevated most of the time. My Dr. then sent me to another specialist that does bone fusions. This Dr. scraped out all the arthritis caused by the injury, then took bone from my heel and fused the 4 smaller toes. She left the big toe undone to give me more mobility. Within a year I had developed a big knot of arthritis above the big toe and my mobility has become extremely limited. I am now in my 5th week of my 6th surgery (doing the big toe). I greatly empthasize with you and your wife! We've been through this 6 times! I care for 3 grandchildren from 1 to 6 and that has been a real challenge! I got one of those rolling walkers with a seat to rest my knee on and still have room to put the baby on the seat beside the knee. He's thrilled with his new wheels! Just remember, the non weight bearing is almost through! I pray every day to help me deal with what life has handed me! I'll keep you in my prayers!

Jere

Hi,

My name is Jere. I too, have a Lisfranc fx of the L foot. Mine happened 2 yrs ago. My 1st surgeon screwed the surgery up twice, so we requested a second opinion. The 2nd surgeon was wonderful and fixed my as correctly as possible. This is an extremely difficult injury to correct. Dr. told me at that time it would be a life altering injury! I thought, it's a broken FOOT! How life altering can it be? During the 3rd surgery I had 2 pins and 2 screws put in. (By this time it had been almost 3 weeks of non wt. bearing) After doing fairly well for 6 months after surgery (still experiencing a great deal of pain), the Dr. opted to remove the hardware. (Surgery # 4) We left it that way for a little over a year but the pain became worse and worse even with orthodics. This Dr. sent me on to a 3rd one who did bone fusions on 4 toes after scraping out all the arthritis caused by the injury. Again no wt bearing for 6 to 8 wks! I continued for another year with some relief for awhile then the pain came back and I developed a large arthritic bump on the top of my foot. So I went back in for the 6th surgery to fuse the big toe. I am in my 6th week of non wt bearing. I got a walker with a seat so I could set things on it and still have room to put my knee. I now KNOW how life altering this can be. I try to focus on what I CAN do.........I can drive because it's my left foot. I can do laundry if the baskets are brought to me, and so on. I greatly empathize with you and your wife! My poor husband has been through this 6 times! It's old hat to us. I will keep you in my prayers! I daily pray "Just show me what I can do today."

Jere Hahn

In May of 2002 my 16 year old son suffered multiple lisfranc fractures to his right foot which was crushed between two vehicles. Due to the extent of the injury, the Dr's felt the best option was for him to be placed in a cast after the swelling went down (about 7-10 days) and then do surgery after the foot healed. He had surgery in November 2003 at the Shriners Hospital for Children and they placed 6 screws and 1 pin. All will stay in his foot forever. In addition 3 joints were fused. The foot is still somewhat deformed and he does suffer with arthritis. But all things considered I am grateful that at least he can walk and he has his foot!

To all of those who have been recently injured in the last 5 to 5.5 weeks, let me tell you, try having pain for 7 months. In brief my injure consists of a vertical fracture on my talus, dislocation of all 4 tarsals, plus a compound dislocation of my fibula (which came out the side of my ankle), and a dislocation of my tibia. The day of this injury all the above was surgically put back together without any pins. Also there was no known broken bones at that time. After the initial injury (4 months later) the doctor found scar tissue and bone fragments. Then it was removed Dec. 7th. Now 5 weeks later, I have as much pain as I did before the 2nd surgery. So in closing, so how long should I have to wait till my pain goes away?

Well I went to posts on Lisfranc Fractures 4 years ago, (fell off ladder at work) and hoped for the best. I am still hoping for it, but after 5 years of off and on problems with this injury, I am really at a loss!!! It took a year to diagnose- remember this was workers comp and I was sent to an Orthopedic and put in a boot for much of the year. With no let up of pain, they finally sent me to a Foot Dr who found the injury immediately. Because it took a year, the arthritis that developed was cleaned out, the bones fused together and 3 screws put in (permenently) The recovery took another year. Things settled a bit as I had pain, but it was less servere and ibprofen, ice and rest usually helped.
A year ago I began to have more pain on the top of my foot, finally realizing that 1 of the screws was coming to the surface. I had moved states and the workers comp settled, and now go through the mess of referrals, etc..I'm sure you all have that experience. In June my new dr thought it would be fine to take the screws out. After surgery, I found out he took 2 of the 3, but with the 2nd screw he had to dig it out of the bone. Within 3 months, my pain just got worse. Now I have a stress fracture, as the bone had not grown back, and because this "latest" case has only been 3 months, the bone stimulator my Dr wanted to get for me was denied because I have not had this situation for 6 months!!! So what is next? I don't know. For those of you just going through this, get all the info and thorough help you can. Also, take the time your Dr says so that it can heal. I rushed my Dr into letting me go back to work after the latest surgery and he said we pushed it- thus the stress fracture. Now I am only working very part time instead of full time. The saga continues.....any suggestions?

A horse stepped on my left foot 10 weeks ago. She was on her hind legs at the time. Lots of weight. I went to Urgent Care and x-rays showed a suspected fracture of the 2nd metarsal. I went to a Podiatrist a few days later and he wrapped the foot and prescribed a boot and no weight bearing. He suspected a Lisfranc injury but x-rays didn't show one. Two weeks later, after subsequent x-rays and no improvement in swelling/pain I had an MRI which confirmed the metarsal fracture and indicated 2 "possible" fractures of the cuboid, along with bone edema at the 2nd and 3rd cuniform bones. Fractures were non-displaced according to my Podiatrist. I healed very slowly and just began weight bearing a week ago. I'm wearing running shoes and have little to no swelling, but I can't walk without limping. I have no pain when standing still and bearing weight, but I can't move with normal range of motion wihtout pain. The pain is sharp and on the outside of my foot at the cuboid, radiating across the mid-foot. I'm worried now that I have an undiagnosed Lisfranc injury. Being non-weight bearing for 9 weeks was torture. I can't imagine going back, but I don't want permanent damage either. I was a non-competitive runner before this injury and want to get back to it asap. Should I see an orthopedic surgeon at this late date? I trusted my podiatrist because he's a foot "specialist." How many x-rays did you all receive to be diagnosed? My podiatrist has one of those "mini" x-ray machines and did two films in two different positions. Sorry for so many questions. Any suggestions/information you all can give me is really appreciated.

My injury occurred on Jan 8, 2007, when I slipped on the ice and missed; that is, my butt acted pretty much like a Guillotine with my right foot underneath -- can't honestly say I hit the ground XD My leg must have been turned with the knee to the outside and the inside of my foot upward. The pain was so severe I knew something had to have been broken. Five minutes of screaming, yelling, and crying in my driveway resulted in nobody in my neighborhood even looking outside to see what had happened. When I was finally able to crawl up the driveway and pull myself up on the bumper of my truck, I hopped into the house on my left foot, whereupon my g/f suggested all us guys could be wimps sometimes. She blanched at the hospital when they brought out the X-Rays and told me the severity of my injuries is typically only seen in major auto accidents.

I broke the third metatarsal about 3/8" from the top and tore its ligaments, leaving a piece of bone floating inside the foot -- this is likely what caused the majority of my pain. I also tore both ligaments of the second metatarsal -- perhaps the second most painful factor. The initial X-Rays revealed dislocated fourth and fifth metatarsals. No other dislocations showed up in the X-Rays.

To make a short story long, the ER doc referred me to a sports medicine/trauma specialist and the surgery took place on Jan 11. CAT Scan and Surgery revealed a slight dislocation of the first metatarsal and the fourth and fifth slid back into place once the second and third were fixed with screws. I'm presently carrying around five chunks of Titanium until around May 10.

I was in a walking cast/robo-boot for two weeks and the sutures were removed at that time. I have been riding my crutches (I hate the bloody things!) less and less every day, though I don't visit my cutter again until March 6th. He should allow me to begin weight-bearing "as tolerable" at that time. Well...I can already tolerate walking with a slight limp which is slowly disappearing.

I have had no pain at all for at least three weeks, but the foot still swells if I don't remain lying down all day.

Now, here's the off-topic part: I'm on a Thursday night bowling league; Jan 11 was the first night I've missed this season and it's the night I "fell" into first place in the race for "Most Improved Average" -- and without throwing a single frame, I've remained in the lead ever since. My cutter bowls on the same league, for a rival team. He's not in the Most Improved Average race ;-)

I SUFFERED A LISFRANCE FRACTURE TO MY RIGHT FOOT IN 2003. DEPENDING ON HOW BAD SHE BROKE HERS, THIS WILL BOTHER HER FOR THE REST OF HER LIFE. IN DECEMBER I HAD ANOTHER SURGERY TO PERMANETLY FUSE FOUR OF MY JOINTS TOGETHER. THIS SURGERY IS SUPPOSE TO HELP ALLEVIATE THE PAIN. ALL I CAN SAY IS TELL YOUR WIFE TO BE PATIENT BECAUSE OVER TIME THE PAIN WILL BE TOLERABLE.

I am about to the get the screws out of my foot after 9 weeks. Will I be able to run ir walk normall?. Doctor hasn't said anything about physical therapy. I am tired of sitting. I have been putting weight on my heel., because it doesn't hurt unless it has been for a 5- 1- min span. Then my heal hurts. I am heavy and this is wearing out my good leg(knee) and Feet. Any advice

I fell down the stairs 3 weeks ago and had surgery 2 weeks ago for my lis franc injury (which I also had never heard of). I had one screw put in my foot with ORIF. I am getting around on crutches and will have the cast put on tomorrow (as long as the stitches can come out - I am healing quite slowly). My foot also remains so swollen and I feel it swell up and go back down throught out the day. I feel so much going on in my foot which I assume is the healing process from the surgery. My orthopedic surgeon said that I must not be weight bearing for 6 weeks from the time of surgery, so I have approximately 4 weeks to go and I feel like I am counting the days. I am trying to get around on crutches, which is not easy. I would love to hear from someone who has been through this that has gone through the entire process....waiting for the cast to come off, start to be weight bearing, having the screw(s) taken out and recovery. ....rehab etc. I am so afraid of falling again and the pain in the future. Please tell me your experiences. Thansk!