It’s a big day in my rehabilitation program – 18 months since surgery. Why is this significant? All the literature surrounding tibial plateau fracture and surgery says that
improvement is most noticeable in the first 12 months of rehabilitation and can continue for up to 18 months. There is no suggestion anywhere in the research that recovery
continues after 18 months. So what I have now is what I will have for the rest of my life. It’s worth a review to see where you get to after 18 months of continuous
rehabilitation, involving weekly sessions with a personal trainer concentrating solely on post-surgical recovery.
In essence I can:
- Walk continuously, climb up and down hills, climb up and down stairs and hike carrying a heavy backpack with no sign of pain or discomfort. I have tested my climbing ability on a very steep cliff near the Grand Canyon and found no noticeable difference in strength either going up or going down in either leg. There was no noticeable difference in fatigue in either leg
- Perform sophisticated gym exercises including heavy leg presses, one legged squats and numerous sets on a leg extension machine without any pain or excessive fatigue
- Perform exercises that require balancing on the broken leg while performing other exercises. My balance on the broken leg is now almost as good as on the unbroken leg although it has not recovered completely to where it was before the accident
- Get shoes and boots on and off with no difficulty or discomfort.
- Get comfortably on and off an escalator leading with either leg.
Most significantly, I am not in any pain. In this sense, being pain-free, I have made a complete recovery.
What I can’t do:
- Jog or run more than about 25 m e.g. running to catch a ferry. To do any more than this brings on severe pain in my knee
- Jump down from a height of one meter or more, landing with all my weight on the injured leg. This causes severe pain. I can do this easily on the unbroken leg.
What are the unknowns? The most significant unknown is whether I can ski comfortably again. I attempted skiing in January and February 2016 and was only able to ski
about half the days of the holiday and then in considerable pain. I did not ski during the Australian winter July to September 2016. The next effort will be a heli skiing
trip in Canada in January 2017 followed by several weeks in Montana and Idaho. I will not know until then whether all this has been worthwhile.
Still things could be worse. Except for the unknown in relation to skiing I have made, as near as practicable, a complete recovery from the accident.
Thank you for your informative advice and thoughts. I am 65 years old always kept fit and walked and exercised. I knocked my knee at , a concert on a wooden skirting ! I had a Tibia Plateau fracture on the 24th November 2016. I had surgery for a plate and 4 screws, . I was in a cast for a month and Physio began three times a week after that. I live in Pakistan, I am originally from Sri Lanka. It was a miserable Christmas! I am walking bearing weight on the bad leg with a walker. The knee physio kills me but I am determined to get back my mobility.
I am miserable that I cannot go to the gym or walk, but my faith in the Lord keeps me strong. Any further information on mobility will be welcome. Great to know you are fully recovered.
Anne,
If you want to see where I was at at your stage you should scroll back through the web-site. If your surgeon was good and you only wish to recover to the point of walking and going to the gym you will probably make a complete recovery. Its the more arduous stuff – running,skiing etc that’s a bit more problematic. I leave tomorrow for my second attempt at skiing post the accident almost two years ago. Good luck with the recovery.
Kieran
Hi,
I have a tibial fracture plateau with a plate & 7 screws. I broke it running on my own in mid-sprint at footy training. Freak accident, slipped over.
I’m 33 yr old female. I am 3 weeks post-surgery and only started Physio last week. I am planning on getting married & trying to see when this is possible based on when I can walk ok. I’m 6 weeks NWB & then 6 weeks of partial-WB. I had surgery May 2nd this year. I’m assuming I can’t walk comfortably between 4-6mths? You started to walk comfortably after 3 mths? Thanks Kylie
Ps I’m fucused on Physio & exercises to give my leg the best shot of recovery.
Kylie,
you are only young so your recovery should be more rapid than mine however it will depend on many factors particularly the severity of the break and the skill of your surgeon. As you rightly point out you will have six weeks non-weight bearing then I went to full weight-bearing straightaway. The partial weight-bearing is preferred by some surgeons and not by others. As I could walk comfortably after about three months I can’t see why you wouldn’t be able to walk comfortably after four months. You should ask your physio. They are often more knowledgeable on aspects of recovery than surgeons. I certainly wouldn’t be planning a wedding less than four months after surgery. Maybe the first week of September would be safe.
Good luck and congratulations on the wedding
Kieran Kelly
Hello,
I’m so glad I found this page. I’m at 20 months post op from ski accident and had tibial plateau fracture with torn meniscus. I believe 5 screws and plate. I’m already forgetting how many screws (but can find out).
The first 6 months were hard. 1.5 months no weight bearing on the leg affected, after 1.5 months to 3 months partial weight bearing, after 3 months I started slowly weight bearing and got rid of crutches. Realistically at around 4 months I could somehow walk with limp but limited distances.
Moving forward I used this Facebook group, active tibial plateau fracture and return to sports, and people had their milestones shared at 9 months, 12 months 15 months, 18 months, including myself.
Well, at 20 months, I still have some pain after excessive exercising, but I was able to progress almost every month until now.
Now I can snow show, hike 10-15 miles and did once 1000-meter elevation gain on one hike. I cycle and start at 18 months to play tennis.
The question is skiing and cross-country skiing which I hope to try this year. Even though I’m not sure is worth trying after so much hell we went through to recover. I broke my leg by falling on a side on green run which is crazy.
I thought to start this winter with cross country skiing for 2 months, and then 2 months do downhill. The skiing will be attempted at 2 years.
I still do personal training, after physical therapy was ended at around 14 months post op. But I consider personal training continuation of physical therapy.
Just curious about skiing and if anyone has still pain and if worth it?
Hi, There will be some pain in the first few years after surgery when skiing but gradually it abates as the leg strengthens. I am still skiing although I have had to maintain a once a week gym session to retain leg strength. Good luck.