Today I had my next scheduled appointment, this time with a Nurse Practitioner. (It turns out my surgeon is in Poland helping Ukrainian refugees!) The cast was removed, the incision inspected, and the staples removed. Everything was textbook and the incision looks “very good”.<\/p>\n
The surgeon’s plan for me was another cast for 4 more weeks, but the P.A. was candid with me: she was concerned about muscle atrophy and tightening of the reattached tendon. I was given the option of a brace which would restrict the movement of the knee as the cast had done, but which could be set to allow increasing amounts of movement (as directed and advised). I was skeptical at first, but once I saw the brace and how it is designed I was all for it. <\/p>\n
So I now have a brace and am free of the cast! The brace is set to mimic the cast (no bending allowed), but has just enough play in it that a minimum amount of bending will happen naturally. I have another appointment a week from now at which things will be checked again and I will likely get permission to adjust the “unlocked” setting to something that will allow me to start stretching the tendon while sitting.<\/p>\n
I feel I need to tell you that I’m in no pain!<\/em> Once the initial pain from the trauma\/surgery wore off I was and still am in no pain. Nor am I “laid up.” I am getting around as well as one can without bending one’s leg. The only things with which I need assistance are scooting into the back seat of a car and putting on my left sock. Other than that, Life is pretty much normal (though I am avoiding flights of stairs for obvious reasons–no need to tempt Fate!).<\/p>\n\n\n\n