The Ankle Update

It hasn't even been two weeks since we all visited the ER b/c I couldn't walk but I already have my MRI results. Pretty amazing health care service eh? Too bad it couldn't be like this for everyone...but that is for another post. I know some friends and family are interested to see what the magical machine revealed about my weird post-partum ankle injury. Well here it is, the laundry list, as the orthopedic surgeon who shared the results with me called it:

1. Tenosynovitis involving the flexor hallucis longus ... bla, bla, bla

2. Tenosynovitis and Tendonitis to the peroneus longus and brevis tendons...bla, bla, bla

3. Nondisplaced anterior distal fibular avulsion fracture...bla, bla, bla

4. Disrupted anterior talofibular ligament...bla, bla, bla

5. Talar chondromalacia

6. Possible ganglion cyst.

And that folks, is the abbreviated list. What does that mean in plain English? Obviously it is not good news. I was quite disappointed as I had already planned my post doctor's office visit run. I should have known it wasn't going to be good news as my ankle has been persistently sore for the past little while. When I saw my scan what jumped out at me and at the doc was some really bright white signal within my ankle, up the side of my lower leg and within my foot. That accounts for #1, which is basically a whole lotta fluid around my tendons in this area. #2 is more fluid and tendonitis. #3 means that my ankle has grown a bit of extra bone over the years, likely due to all of my ankle injuries and this bone is periodically breaking off...youch! #4 means that the lateral ligaments (outside of the ankle) that I have strained, pulled and torn on more than a few occasions kinda aren't there anymore. I guess these guys can only take so much abuse before they pack it in and just kinda go away....kinda creepy eh? No wonder I have a loose ankle. There isn't much there anymore holding it together on the outside. #4 is the arthritic stuff he alluded to before. Basically the cartilage b/tw the bottom of my fibula and my ankle is wearing away which likely accounts for the grinding feeling I often get in my ankle. This is the reason he is most concerned about me running as all that will do is accelerate the degeneration in this area. He didn't spend much time on #5 at all but it is pretty self-explanataory...more fluid.

So I am off to see a foot and ankle specialist in January and the orthopedic guy I saw this week warned me to expect surgery in my future. I am hoping for the best right now, that something can be done to make my ankle feel and work better with minimal disruption to our life. We'll see how that all turns out. In the meantime my sweet husband has ordered me an ankle brace type thing that we hope will enable me to run once in awhile b/c let's face it, what better exercise is there for a mom of two kiddos. It requires only running shoes (and hat and mitts in this weather), and about 40 minutes. No driving, no gym memberships, no gear, no additional time. What could be better? I keep telling myself that if I didn't have that bad night where we had to go to the hospital, I'd never know about all this and I'd still be running. But I have resigned myself to spending more time on the rollers in the basement. Kai doesn't mind as he finds the rollers absolutely fascinating. We're hoping for some serious snow fall this winter too so I can spend lots of time on my cross country skis. My skate skis are in the shop at this moment being waxed up and the fish scales are ready to break trail tomorrow after we get the forecasted dump tonight. I have also joined up for some indoor group riding at a local bike shop on Saturday mornings starting right after New Year. I am not sure how I'll survive 2 hours on rollers so we are on a hunt to find our rusty old trainer. Greg had to give me a little kick in the okole to get this going as I was worried about how it would work with nursing and of course, I am nervous about being the fat old lady amongst a room full of racer kids. Well, at least I know they won't drop me.