I had achilles tendon surgery yesterday

How long is the rehab for this?

Hey man, I know what you have been there. I had it twice.

What I can tell you is:

(1) Keep a positive attitude. You WILL run better than ever, in about a year. You *WILL BE STRONGER THAN EVER* but it will take time.

(2) Right now, just rest in bed, but in a few days, hobble on crutches down to the gym and do something, just upper body stuff.

(3) As soon as your stitches come out, get in the pool and on the eliptical. As soon as you feel ok, start yoga.

(4) Relax and try not to gain weight with a lot of junk food. Get involved in positive non-running activities like studying and reading and helping others.

I wish you all the best.

Jason

Jason -- thanks for the good thoughts. I am definitely taking it very easy right now but am looking forward to getting back at it down the road. Did some swimming the last few weeks to start getting used to that. Should be able to start that in about a month. Thanks again.

Curious -- I am in a cast with crutches -- no weight on the foot -- for one month. Then I will have a removable boot for up to a month. Once the cast comes off I can start swimming and will start rehab that day. Best case for starting to run very lightly sounds like about 3-4 months from now. Probably 6-9 months before I could be doing anything resembling real training.

Here is what I had done:

All the years of aggravating the tendon left me with a diagnosis this spring of chronic insertional achilles tendonosis. Basically the tendon had degenerated and calcified around the insertion to the heel. I had a prominent growth called a Haglund's growth on the back of the heel. I guess since I overpronate the rotation combined with the normal movement rubbing against the bump damaged the tendon. Then it would cause calcification further aggravating the situation. My heel had gotten pretty swollen. Over the years I tried physical therapy, rest, etc. and after a few months off would be able to train again for awhile but then it would flare up again. So this summer I had ESWT done which helped for awhile but again I think the structural problem was so severe that it flared up even worse.

So the doctor went in from the outside of the tendon. He did not detach it but pulled it back from the bone in order to shave the bump and spurs off of the bone. He also said the tendon itself was very thickened and he cut some of the bad tissue out. The other thing he did was a coblation therapy called TOPAZ. It uses a probe into the tendon and stimulates it to promote healing.

So hopefully I will have a healthier tendon which will no longer be rubbing on a jagged bone.

well, i hope the convalescence is good. i had eswt sept. 2005 and i worked well at tendinosis.

Yesterday marked my 6 month anniversary post-surgery. I had TOPAZ rf coblation for mid-portion achilles tendinosis. Recovery started well and I was feeling really hopeful the first few months. Thought I was cured. But now my tendon is as sore today as it was pre-surgery and I still can't run. I started on a religious bout of painful eccentric exercises about 10 weeks ago (2x per day, 6 sets of 15 reps) and that seemed to make things worse. Anyone out there have any ideas/advice!?

I've heard that there's been some success with sclerosing the neovessels with polidocanol using color doppler ultrasound. Unfortunately, polidocanol isn't available in the US.

I'm at wits end and really missing running. Been a long time.

Try cycling, I waited 6 years for my achilles to heal, it was a waste of time. I wish I started cycling sooner, the buzz is similar and the competition is just as fierce.

Doing something is better than nothing. No injury has ever stopped me from cycling.

Good luck

I made a mistake in my last post. He did not actually cut out tissue. Part of the TOPAZ treatment is a removal of tissue through the coblation process.

Their website has some information on the process.

robidog -- do you ever have achilles problems while cycling? I have tried cycling on and off over the past couple of years. Sometimes my heel felt ok but other times I still had pain.

dmm- I am curious about what the level of function was for you before the decision for surgery. How long did it take to develop, speed vs. slower running, etc. (a link to a previous thread is fine if you already described it there). I hope your rehab goes well.

I have similar symptoms, but I am not really at the "surgery option" point yet.

Enjoy your retirement. Golf can be a blast.

sore spot,

By the time I decided to do have surgery it was pretty much a no-brainer. It was either that or give up competitive running for good. In fact, I don't think I could even do light running for any length of time.

Some background -- I am 46. Ran in HS and a couple of years in college. Was not good enough to compete at a D1 level, gave it up, got a job, we had kids, etc. and barely ran for the next 10-15 years. About 10-12 years ago I started back at it and got into decent shape and started racing somewhat seriously just before I turned 40. At about 40 is when I started having the achilles tendon problems. From 2000-2005 I would have a few months of good running, always nursing a sore heel, interspersed with periods where I could not run. I mostly run easy distance mixed up with fast runs -- sometimes planned and sometimes just when I feel it. Very little interval training/speed work.

In the summer of 2003 I did a few months of 2-3 times per week physical therapy. That strengthened the ankle and surrounding area and I think took some of the pressure off of the tendon. But again after a few months it flared up again. Went through that cycle another time or two. Started training about a year ago hoping to race in 2006 but had problems almost immediately. Went to see a couple of docs, tried a few weeks wearing a boot and doing more physical therapy but did almost no good. So I decided to try ESWT. Did 3 sessions and saw some pretty good improvement. Rested a few weeks, then tarted running a mile a day, went up 5 miles per week total from 5 miles up to a high of 70. Still had some discomfort but it seemed to be improving each week. Then it quickly got worse. For the next 3-4 weeks I would try to run, need to stop, would rest a few days and try again but no success. Sometimes it would be a sharp pain at one of a couple of spots, other times it would be an ache all over the heel area. My pain has always been at and around the insertion -- never up high on the tendon.

So I went back in at the start of December, got another x-ray and talked over tbe surgical option. Given that I had tried just about everything else, and that I am not ready to give up completely, the decision kind of made itself.

Good luck -- hope you can resolve yours without surgery.

The first 10 weeks are the worst. But afterwards, even though you'll still be recovering, you'll be able to get some activity in. After years of issues, I've forgotten that there ever was a problem. Just stick with the course and do what you're supposed to do.

how quickly after eswt did you go to 70mpw? sounds too fast.

i had eswt sep 2005 and had a setback in mar 06 when attempting 30mpw. i takes up to a year for the process to complete itself.

i run now at age 51 only once per 3 days, maybe 17mpw. i race about once per month now.

btw, i had one high-energy treatment.

I had a complete rupture in '88. It's the other one that gets inflamed from time to time. Take your time getting fit. Easy does it. You've plenty of years ahead.

djavelin -- probably a bit too fast, but I think with the structural problems I had it would not have made a difference. The bump on my heel probably would have continued to damage the tendon.

After my third treatment I took another 3-4 weeks before running at all. Then I ran 5 miles, 10, 15, etc. going up 5 a week until I hit 70. So it was probably 4 months after treatment that I hit 70.

ttc -- glad yours worked so well. Hoping for the same.

yeah, sounds as if the haglund's would've aggravated it no matter what; good to have them filed off.

like ttc, my heel pain is a memory and 17min for 5k is back in my sights.

good luck!

No problems cycling. Running is a different ball game, however. My heel just won't respond to conservative therapies. Bursitis, haglunds deformity and permanent inflammation prevent me from running 20 plus miles p/week. I could opt for surgery but since I'm in my late 30's who knows what the outcome would be.

Cycling will allow you to improve for 5-10 yrs. Running is a long slow descent of slower times into your forties.

dmm-

Thanks for the detailed reply. I have had the Haglund's issue for about ten years (that I know of), and most of the time it hasn't been a big impediment, at least until this last year. It sounds like I am a ways from your precipitating situation, as I am free to run a lot of miles and stay aerobically fit, but the past year the heel has flared up with speedwork, and I haven't been able to race much at all. I just turned 50 and feel very fit, so it is frustrating, but reading cases such as yours allows me to be more patient. I will follow your thread with interest, and I wish you the best in a full recovery, and hopefully a year from now we will both have geat results to report!

One week down.

Spent the first four days on the couch or in bed. Since then I have been out every day but I try to keep the foot up when I am not moving.

No real discomfort for the first few days. Last night and this morning I have some pain above and behind the outside ankle bone. I think it may be strain on the leg from the cast more than anything else. It pretty much starts up when I am moving around and stops when I sit.