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I broke my ankle climbing about 6 months ago and had two screws put in.
Since getting back into climbing on long mountain walk-ins my ankle feels sore when walking over uneven ground. Also when I am climbing and knock my ankle against the rock it hurts and bleeds where the heads of the screws are.
Anyone else with a similar experience? Should I get them removed or just man up? .. I hear there can be complications with getting them removed.
In reply to kit perry:
Ask the surgeon about it, my wife had all hers removed after the bone was properly healed, but she was well mashed up in major bones.
Ask the surgeon about it, my wife had all hers removed after the bone was properly healed, but she was well mashed up in major bones.
In reply to kit perry:
I've still got plates & screws all over the place but do intend to have them removed when I can afford it .
All of my friends & aquaintances who have highly recommend there removal just don't do it your self , I tried nipping up a couple of screws in a plate in my clavicle when they were exposed & made a mess . . 80( .
Good luck hope it improves & gets easier for ya soon 80)
I've still got plates & screws all over the place but do intend to have them removed when I can afford it .
All of my friends & aquaintances who have highly recommend there removal just don't do it your self , I tried nipping up a couple of screws in a plate in my clavicle when they were exposed & made a mess . . 80( .
Good luck hope it improves & gets easier for ya soon 80)
In reply to kit perry:
I had ankle screws removed after a year in. Conflicting advice from doctors.
Less pain and more flexibility now
I had ankle screws removed after a year in. Conflicting advice from doctors.
Less pain and more flexibility now
In reply to kit perry:
Friend of mine has pins in his ankle - he keeps ignoring the letters the hospital sends him about taking them out, as they're not causing him any grief at the moment and he doesn't fancy the surgery anyway.
If they're causing you problems, then see your surgeon about it.
Friend of mine has pins in his ankle - he keeps ignoring the letters the hospital sends him about taking them out, as they're not causing him any grief at the moment and he doesn't fancy the surgery anyway.
If they're causing you problems, then see your surgeon about it.
In reply to kit perry:
I broke my medial malleolus, and had an amazing amount of metal in such a small area.I deliberately made out that the metal was causing me grief, as I wanted the metal work out.This is because I was worried that if I had another accident(motorbike 1st time round)that the metal would cause more problems.So the metal work was removed.I was told not to climb for a month.I went to Stanage a week later to photograph friends,but found it too nice a day to stand passively by.So..I seconded Right Unconquerable.The wound bled, and it was painful,but I felt good about it.
The ankle has been fine since, apart from the fact that it clicks at times(no pain).This is due to a small boney fragment floating around.This may have been due to too early a removal..Or too early a climb..
I broke my medial malleolus, and had an amazing amount of metal in such a small area.I deliberately made out that the metal was causing me grief, as I wanted the metal work out.This is because I was worried that if I had another accident(motorbike 1st time round)that the metal would cause more problems.So the metal work was removed.I was told not to climb for a month.I went to Stanage a week later to photograph friends,but found it too nice a day to stand passively by.So..I seconded Right Unconquerable.The wound bled, and it was painful,but I felt good about it.
The ankle has been fine since, apart from the fact that it clicks at times(no pain).This is due to a small boney fragment floating around.This may have been due to too early a removal..Or too early a climb..
In reply to veteye:
Ironic you were climbing the right unconquerable. It was that climb that I decked out on and broke my ankle!
Ironic you were climbing the right unconquerable. It was that climb that I decked out on and broke my ankle!
In reply to kit perry: in the event that u suffer from an iron deficiency.. probably best to leave them in.. LOOLZ
had mine for 30 years...fell and stripped all my gear....tibia and fibia broke, had two screws placed. Never been a problem ... so far!
In reply to kit perry:
I had the same problem with a plate in my ankle. It was left in for a couple of years and things only improved when it was removed.
I had the same problem with a plate in my ankle. It was left in for a couple of years and things only improved when it was removed.
In reply to kit perry:
I have had 3 screws in my ankle for 8 years now. I'm not planning on having them taken out.
It doesn't hurt at all now, pain stopped after about 3 years.
As for the bleeding, I would definitely question that!!
I have had 3 screws in my ankle for 8 years now. I'm not planning on having them taken out.
It doesn't hurt at all now, pain stopped after about 3 years.
As for the bleeding, I would definitely question that!!
In reply to Jus: Lots of posts about screws and plates set me wondering. I don't recall such a prevalance of ironmongery repairs say 30 years ago. Are they relatively new? What did they do before? Are they entirely necessary? I note though Mick's comment about having stuff in for 30 years, and wonder if it's just because I hear more about such repairs on the web or know more climbers having accidents? Are they just a quick convenient way for hospitals to get us repaired, without perhaps thinking about how the very active might be impaired by them?
In reply to Richard Baynes:
Plates, pins and screws are great as they allow you to keep joints mobile instead of having them set in plaster and immobilised which lets tendons tighten and muscles waste. When I broke my ankle Chamonix Hospital had me on physio from day 3 to ensure that I maintained the full range of movement. Sadly when I got back to the UK it took almost 3 months to get to see a physio so I still walk with a slight limp ;(
> (In reply to Jus) Lots of posts about screws and plates set me wondering. I don't recall such a prevalance of ironmongery repairs say 30 years ago. Are they relatively new? What did they do before? Are they entirely necessary? I note though Mick's comment about having stuff in for 30 years, and wonder if it's just because I hear more about such repairs on the web or know more climbers having accidents? Are they just a quick convenient way for hospitals to get us repaired, without perhaps thinking about how the very active might be impaired by them?
Plates, pins and screws are great as they allow you to keep joints mobile instead of having them set in plaster and immobilised which lets tendons tighten and muscles waste. When I broke my ankle Chamonix Hospital had me on physio from day 3 to ensure that I maintained the full range of movement. Sadly when I got back to the UK it took almost 3 months to get to see a physio so I still walk with a slight limp ;(
In reply to kit perry: got 2 screws in left ankle, been in 20 years and you can feel the heads under the skin. never had a problem with them. If you do want them removed has to be sooner rather than later, after a period of time they wont do it.
In reply to kit perry:
I had eight screws and a plate in my collar bone - six of the screws and the plate were removed - the two remaining screws are uncomfortable if I touch them, so I don't. The surgeon decided what should stay and what should go - I was in no position to give an informed opinion on what would give the best outcome - I just gave input on the likely stresses to which the bone would be exposed (i.e climbing, rucksacs etc, but not cage fighting, rugby or shifting scaffolding all day)
I had eight screws and a plate in my collar bone - six of the screws and the plate were removed - the two remaining screws are uncomfortable if I touch them, so I don't. The surgeon decided what should stay and what should go - I was in no position to give an informed opinion on what would give the best outcome - I just gave input on the likely stresses to which the bone would be exposed (i.e climbing, rucksacs etc, but not cage fighting, rugby or shifting scaffolding all day)
In reply to kit perry:
I think you should climb some hard sport probably come to Portland on friday and then you wouldn't fall off so much in the first place...
I think you should climb some hard sport probably come to Portland on friday and then you wouldn't fall off so much in the first place...
In reply to Alex Hallam:
When you say Portland, I am sure you mean Swanage... in particular boulder ruckle area.. finale groove. Matt says it is a massive jug fest!
When you say Portland, I am sure you mean Swanage... in particular boulder ruckle area.. finale groove. Matt says it is a massive jug fest!
In reply to kit perry:
Hi, I have all mine still in:
http://www.ukclimbing.com/images/dbpage.php?id=2263
The ones on the bottom right sometimes rub on my boots but otherwise no issues at all. It's been over ten years now and I've skied and ice climbed every year since. It would be nice to have it all gone but any surgery has a risk so until the bolts start tearing holes in my boots they're staying put.
Cheers
Toby
Hi, I have all mine still in:
http://www.ukclimbing.com/images/dbpage.php?id=2263
The ones on the bottom right sometimes rub on my boots but otherwise no issues at all. It's been over ten years now and I've skied and ice climbed every year since. It would be nice to have it all gone but any surgery has a risk so until the bolts start tearing holes in my boots they're staying put.
Cheers
Toby
In reply to kit perry: i agree with the previous poster: mr A hallam. it seems wat u need is a double dosage of MTFU pills and a trip to swanage/portland for some srs routage..
In reply to kit perry: I broke my femur, medial malleolus and fibula just over a year ago - the screws in the malleolus caused no end of problems with the head breaking through the skin any time I knocked my ankle jamming/scrambling along the bottom of crags etc.
I was booked in to have them out along with the fibula plate but managed to re-fracture the fibula 6 months after the original injury and just before the scheduled op, in a minor slip on some wet grass, which would have been nothing other than a bit embarrassing had the metalwork not been in there. (The surgeon explained that plate creates a stress riser which deosn't allow the bone to flex, so when I slipped it snapped over the top of the plate where normally the bone would probably have flexed a bit and absorbed the impact.) I had a longer plate put in for the fibula and the malleolus screws removed at the same time.
The malleolus is now much, much more comfortable and even though the fibula plate doesn't cause too many problems, I'm still going to tell the doc's it is and have it removed for fear of re-fracturing again (not unlikely considering what we do as climbers). The metalwork in my hip from the femur break can get pretty sore after long mountain days, but I that's a major op and unlikely to be a mechanism for further injury so I can live with it. To me it's about levels of risk vs potential benefit and lower leg ops (from my admittedly limited experiance) seem to be fairly low risk for potentially large gain and the rehab doesn't take too long so it's worth it in my view. My 2p anyway - sorry for the essay! Cheers, Rob
I was booked in to have them out along with the fibula plate but managed to re-fracture the fibula 6 months after the original injury and just before the scheduled op, in a minor slip on some wet grass, which would have been nothing other than a bit embarrassing had the metalwork not been in there. (The surgeon explained that plate creates a stress riser which deosn't allow the bone to flex, so when I slipped it snapped over the top of the plate where normally the bone would probably have flexed a bit and absorbed the impact.) I had a longer plate put in for the fibula and the malleolus screws removed at the same time.
The malleolus is now much, much more comfortable and even though the fibula plate doesn't cause too many problems, I'm still going to tell the doc's it is and have it removed for fear of re-fracturing again (not unlikely considering what we do as climbers). The metalwork in my hip from the femur break can get pretty sore after long mountain days, but I that's a major op and unlikely to be a mechanism for further injury so I can live with it. To me it's about levels of risk vs potential benefit and lower leg ops (from my admittedly limited experiance) seem to be fairly low risk for potentially large gain and the rehab doesn't take too long so it's worth it in my view. My 2p anyway - sorry for the essay! Cheers, Rob
In reply to kit perry: Once the bone has repaired itself its as strong as it ever was (often stronger as its thicker) so the screws serve no useful purpose. Hence leaving them in can never do any good but it could do some harm.
Breaking your ankle a second time with screws in there could be very nasty.
Breaking your ankle a second time with screws in there could be very nasty.
In reply to pec:
Not necessarily true, which is why i still have two out of my eight screws still in place - six screws held the plate in place,the other two join the two halves together through the diagonal break line
> (In reply to kit perry) Once the bone has repaired itself its as strong as it ever was (often stronger as its thicker) so the screws serve no useful purpose. Hence leaving them in can never do any good but it could do some harm.
Not necessarily true, which is why i still have two out of my eight screws still in place - six screws held the plate in place,the other two join the two halves together through the diagonal break line
In reply to nniff:
Thats provoked an interesting thought. They gave me the screws and plate after they removed them but the long screw that attached the fibula to the tibia wasn't with them. I wonder if it's still in there?
The plate wasn't much good in there I could never get fridge magnets to stick to it
> (In reply to pec)
> [...]
>
> Not necessarily true, which is why i still have two out of my eight screws still in place - six screws held the plate in place,the other two join the two halves together through the diagonal break line
> [...]
>
> Not necessarily true, which is why i still have two out of my eight screws still in place - six screws held the plate in place,the other two join the two halves together through the diagonal break line
Thats provoked an interesting thought. They gave me the screws and plate after they removed them but the long screw that attached the fibula to the tibia wasn't with them. I wonder if it's still in there?
The plate wasn't much good in there I could never get fridge magnets to stick to it
In reply to kit perry:
My surgeon is reluctant to take the screws out of my tibia and talus due to the infection risk of any surgery. If infection sets in it has a direct path into the bone.
My surgeon is reluctant to take the screws out of my tibia and talus due to the infection risk of any surgery. If infection sets in it has a direct path into the bone.
In reply to kit perry: Hey, I crashed my bike last year and now have screws on my wrist,one of which sticks out and hurts when i bang it! I saw my doctor about 3 weeks back and he said that it's a pretty simple operation ( dont no if its different for your angle) but im going for it. defo man up. Al
In reply to Alistair- corbett: They just wired my wrist back together, leaving the wires sticking out. When it came time to remove them, they just turned up with some longnose pliers and pulled them out (fun!!)
In reply to Stew.G- I meant it was protruding not sticking out and yeah the GP said the operation is quite simple, as they dont remove the plate and only create a small incision to take out screw,which can be done without being general anesthetic... so good one!
In reply to kit perry: ha sorry about that, got slightly carried away that you were taking the piss and when I came back to actually reading it (slightly dyslexic climber) I realised you probaly werent. Sounds pretty bad... from what ive heard they have to really yank at it!
In reply to kit perry: yo, when vineet broke his wrist, he had it pinned for 6wks or so.. it was a long thin pin and one end poked out of the bone and was just below the skin.. when he went to have them removed.. the doc just got a pair of pliers.. and yanked them out! done in like 10seconds. but quite painful. i guess thats what u get for beinga pundek
Slight tangent. For people who still have metal work. Never had a problem with cold weather and most of mine until this winter. The screws, no issue but my eye socket the most resent addition to my metal work and about 2 years old, one that can never be removed. During the cold snap, no problem when up in hills north of boarder but got to Brizzle over xmas couple of days later to see kids it started to feel a bit odd!? Anybody else had any issues??
In reply to kit perry:
I had 3 screws in my femur after snapping the bone completely in half. After joining the middle together they put a metal bar inside and running the length of the bone, and screws near hip and knee to stop it rotating etc. I didn't plan having screws and bar out but found that as the screws were not made to measure they actually stuck out of the bone as were too long (seen on xray) This meant that after all was healed I could feel muscle or tendon etc getting caught on the screws and producing pain. The Dr didn't believe me but after a lot of complaining they agreed to take it all out and hey presto no pain from moving. The bone is as strong as it ever was so no need to keep anything in. Although that ended paragliding and hanggliding
I had 3 screws in my femur after snapping the bone completely in half. After joining the middle together they put a metal bar inside and running the length of the bone, and screws near hip and knee to stop it rotating etc. I didn't plan having screws and bar out but found that as the screws were not made to measure they actually stuck out of the bone as were too long (seen on xray) This meant that after all was healed I could feel muscle or tendon etc getting caught on the screws and producing pain. The Dr didn't believe me but after a lot of complaining they agreed to take it all out and hey presto no pain from moving. The bone is as strong as it ever was so no need to keep anything in. Although that ended paragliding and hanggliding
In reply to firefighteralex:
I ve got an appointment with the surgeon now... hopefully he'll make things clearer.
I ve got an appointment with the surgeon now... hopefully he'll make things clearer.
In reply to kit perry:
Screws and a plate and bone graft in my ankle following bi-malleolar 25 years ago. Had them all out about 12 months later (metalwork that is!). Always thought I wouldn't fancy risk of another break with the scaffolding in? Touch wood - no problems at all then or since.
Screws and a plate and bone graft in my ankle following bi-malleolar 25 years ago. Had them all out about 12 months later (metalwork that is!). Always thought I wouldn't fancy risk of another break with the scaffolding in? Touch wood - no problems at all then or since.
In reply to kit perry:
has any one here has problems with heat in their screws??
mine get really really hot at times,no sign of infection in them. got them in on 11th march and ideally id like them out in the summer as they are extremely noticeable beneath the skin and extremely uncomfortable too
has any one here has problems with heat in their screws??
mine get really really hot at times,no sign of infection in them. got them in on 11th march and ideally id like them out in the summer as they are extremely noticeable beneath the skin and extremely uncomfortable too
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