My Ankle: A Freak Show

I saw Dr. Myerson today for my 6.5 month post-op follow up from my most recent ankle surgery (triple arthrodesis, sural neurectomy, and Crisman-Snook lateral ligament reconstruction). Dr. Myerson is a leading foot and ankle specialist, so has a lot of doctors following him around as a part of a fellowship program. The first time I saw Dr. Myerson, I had about 6 doctors come in and examine me all at once, all who wanted to see me walk, see my X-rays, etc.

I thought it was crazy at the time, but then, my situation was a bit unique. Never, though, did I expect what I got today: 7 different doctors coming in at different times to see me. Most of them didn't even introduce themselves when they came in, which annoyed me to no end. Instead they would look at my most recent X-rays, look at me, and then look back and forth between them and me repeatedly.

I understand that it is quite rare to see a triple arthrodesis (ankle fusion) on a 25 year old, but some greeting would have been nice. Of those fellows that actually talked to me, they wanted to know about my initial injury and about the three previous surgeries. I honestly felt like a specimen on display at a museum.

Alas, all's well that ends well. I'm done going to Dr. Myerson for the time being and will only have to go back to him if things get dramatically worse. I do, however, have to see a pain specialist to hopefully minimize most of the discomfort in my ankle. I'm not sure how that will end up, but I'm going to go and see what the doctor suggests/recommends for treatment.

The other good news of the visit is that I should be able to regain most of my dorsi- and plantar-flexion, so my PT has been given carte blanche to beat me up a bit, provided my pain is under control. I'm really looking forward to being able to walk down the stairs like a normal person, instead of taking them one at a time. I also can't wait until it stops hurting when I walk or bike, so I can get my butt back into shape.

I'll keep readers here posted on how things go with the pain management specialist!