Sorry for the ridiculous lag time on my blog. I suppose it's a good sign. Life has moved on and I've become very busy. But I feel a certain responsibility to put an update out here.
The surgery, for the most part, has been very successful. If you have read through my blog, then you will know that I actually had 3 procedures done during my surgery. 1) the arthrodesis (fusion), 2) an osteotomy to create an arch and 3) a lateral column lengthening to straighten my foot out.
The fusion went perfectly. The pain, the discomfort and weird sensations have all disappeared. The fusion and osteotomy combined have given my foot a very "normal" appearance. When I walk barefoot through a puddle, I make a foot print with an arch now. Very cool.
The limited mobility in the joint has been completely tolerable. Occasionally (very infrequently) I'll slightly lose my balance on that foot and have to steady myself, but it's not a problem at all. Very normal.
The third procedure (lateral column lengthening) has unfortunately been problematic. It seems the correction has placed too much stress on the joint just ahead of the calcaneous and it has become inflamed. I return to the surgeon every few months for a cortisone injection to reduce the inflammation. Since the joint is so tight and the inflammation is so great, the shot really really really sucks. I mean it hurts...brings a tear to my eye. But honestly, after the shot, things are fine for several months. Most likely, however, this will ultimately result in a second surgery and a full triple fusion. Which, I am not looking forward to in the least. I'll do shots as long as I can.
I also had a very mysterious pain in my heal that has faded over time, but became difficult to tolerate for a period. Initially the surgeon thought I had developed fasciitis, and then thought there was a scar tissue problem. I eventually had a friend, who is a physical therapist, suggest that I had a knot in my calf muscle that was pushing on a nerve that created a pain in my heal. I started massaging my calf each evening before bed and the pain has decreased significantly.
The pain in the lateral joint has kept me from really taking the foot for a true "test drive." Nobody really wants to hurt themselves. But I have played baseball a bit with my boys and can run the bases just fine. (I don't run flat out, but jogging is okay.) I walk my dogs and go to amusement parks and am able to live my life. When I have a fresh cortisone injection I can get out and cut grass, move heavy stuff around the house and do all the things I would normally do. When the pain returns, I take it easy until I can get into the doctor.
All in all, things are better. It's not what I had hoped for, but for those living with a coalition, you know that any improvement is a big deal.
Thanks for all the emails and posts.
