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Broken legs and ankles heal better if you walk on them within weeks

scientificamerican.com

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Re: Broken legs and ankles heal better if you walk on them within weeks

#271

Post by autoexec »

4ggr0 wrote: post #30
ghaff wrote: post #24

Earlier quoted context omitted.

In general, "society" deciding what activities are too dangerous to routinely allow is a really nasty slope. Yes, there's some special insurance offered through private organizations for things like higher altitude mountaineering. But it's not that big a step to rule that any contact sport, for example, should require special insurance. I'm sure the insurance companies wouldn't mind.

One thing which comes to mind is - why should we stop at sports, then? we'll immediately be at the point where smokers, alcoholics, obese people etc. should pay more, after all, their way of life statistically causes higher costs. (i don't think either of those things should result in higher insurance prices, just continuing the thought.)

insurance companies already buy up information from data brokers and use that to jack up people's rates according to whatever they happen to find to justify it. They won't tell you when they do it, you'll just be offered a very different price than you would have been given if you didn't buy as much alcohol, spent more time at the gym, only drove your car in the daytime, or lived in a different zip code.

Re: Broken legs and ankles heal better if you walk on them within weeks

#272

Post by WithinReason »

TomK32 wrote: post #256
WithinReason wrote: post #97

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That page directly contradicts you since it lists weight lifting exercises like barbell squats

It does not contradict, it lists weight lifting under muscle training, not under bone density.

"Bones stay strong if you give them work to do. The best way to keep bones strong is to do both weight-bearing impact and muscle-strengthening exercises."

Re: Broken legs and ankles heal better if you walk on them within weeks

#273

Post by sim7c00 »

rodary wrote: post #222
spacemark wrote: post #220

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I definitely believe you. I know from a few injuries that with tendons you want to be moving and applying resistance as soon as you are able to prevent the formation of scar tissue and encourage blood flow. It's not a huge leap of logic that bones, too, benefit from movement and resistance when healing. Honest question, how did you know to disregard the doctor 's instructions and start home exercises on the bone at 4…

> how did you know to disregard the doctor 's instructions My background (Russian). Don't trust western approach to solve problems with pills etc. End up talking to (usually) Soviet-trained doctors who can't practice here in the west. The advice makes sense so I follow it believing they know what they're talking about. It's always about the cause, not the symptom. This sort of thing. > How did you limit yourself duri…

you are not wrong, shattered leg, waited too long, can't do shit now. never healed properly. should have listened to my body rather than my doctors. fucking sucks.

Re: Broken legs and ankles heal better if you walk on them within weeks

#274

Post by DrBazza »

rodary wrote: post #212

Anecdotal but... Broke my femur neck on a mountain bike. Surgery, plates and screws. Surgeon said no weight on the broken bone for 8 weeks and no walking on it for 12. And then we'll see he said. In 4 weeks I was on a trainer (fork fixed to the trainer). Started easy with 30min sessions and then increased time and force applied to the pedals. After 2 weeks of "riding", started putting weight on the bone with short wa…

On the other hand, I'm 6 weeks on from 3 fractured ribs, and still no exercise. I'm sure there are a few medical people on here that will tell you that ribs are a special case.

If I were to breathe too deeply during the first few weeks, there was a good chance that I'd re-fracture them; sneezing is known to do this. And for what it's worth, despite what you might see on the TV, broken ribs are no joke.

Recovery time is, apparently anything between 6 and 12 weeks. The first 3 weeks were the absolute worst. I'm finally at the 'it feels like a bruise' stage. As a sporty person I know that if I 'feel fine', I need to add at least 2 weeks on that before I actually start any sports again.

Re: Broken legs and ankles heal better if you walk on them within weeks

#275

Post by grumpy-de-sre »

Same goes for meniscus injuries in the knee (excluding probably things like bucket handle tears that risk further damage with use).

Tore my right meniscus in a skateboarding accident, was recommended keyhole surgery to shave it down but due to being fresh out of university and starting my career I couldn't be bothered to deal with the downtime of surgery etc. Figured I'd deal with it later if it got worse / didn't improve.

And you know what, after 24 months or so of limping about I was pretty much completely recovered and ten years later the knee is still in good shape. Meniscus injuries do heal, they just take a very long time and most surgeons/patients just don't have the patience for rehab. All-in-all no regrets.

I think clinical guidelines are actually swinging back to conservative treatment now. Kind of a reminder about how poorly evidence based surgery can sometimes be (but of course like any tool also a lifesaver).

Re: Broken legs and ankles heal better if you walk on them within weeks

#276

Post by grumpy-de-sre »

rodary wrote: post #222
spacemark wrote: post #220

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I definitely believe you. I know from a few injuries that with tendons you want to be moving and applying resistance as soon as you are able to prevent the formation of scar tissue and encourage blood flow. It's not a huge leap of logic that bones, too, benefit from movement and resistance when healing. Honest question, how did you know to disregard the doctor 's instructions and start home exercises on the bone at 4…

> how did you know to disregard the doctor 's instructions My background (Russian). Don't trust western approach to solve problems with pills etc. End up talking to (usually) Soviet-trained doctors who can't practice here in the west. The advice makes sense so I follow it believing they know what they're talking about. It's always about the cause, not the symptom. This sort of thing. > How did you limit yourself duri…

The story of Valentin Dikul is a great read for anyone interested in the importance of physical rehab, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Valentin_Dikul

Re: Broken legs and ankles heal better if you walk on them within weeks

#277

Post by Foobar8568 »

DrBazza wrote: post #274
rodary wrote: post #212

Anecdotal but... Broke my femur neck on a mountain bike. Surgery, plates and screws. Surgeon said no weight on the broken bone for 8 weeks and no walking on it for 12. And then we'll see he said. In 4 weeks I was on a trainer (fork fixed to the trainer). Started easy with 30min sessions and then increased time and force applied to the pedals. After 2 weeks of "riding", started putting weight on the bone with short wa…

On the other hand, I'm 6 weeks on from 3 fractured ribs, and still no exercise. I'm sure there are a few medical people on here that will tell you that ribs are a special case. If I were to breathe too deeply during the first few weeks, there was a good chance that I'd re-fracture them; sneezing is known to do this. And for what it's worth, despite what you might see on the TV, broken ribs are no joke. Recovery time…

I had a small rib crack when I was teenager, laughing was a pain, as it was winter, flu was going around.

I had to use the maximum dosage of codeine for two months, school was fun...

I don't even want to imagine the pain with 3 fractured ribs.

Re: Broken legs and ankles heal better if you walk on them within weeks

#278

Post by guitarlimeo »

crazygringo wrote: post #209
grayhatter wrote: post #47

Earlier quoted context omitted.

this is such a wild take to me... it's impossible to quantity at what point something becomes a net negative for society. Smoking seems to be an obvious example, because it's addictive quality inhibits a fair decision to the smoker, and it's something with a lifelong pathology. But trampolines and mountain biking are both activities that result in ephemeral injuries. There is the rare case where a particular injury m…

> but how is that a drain on society, and not primarily the individual? There are two factors. The first is that a drain on individuals is a drain on society. That's why we outlaw risky behavior like lethal recreactional drugs, driving without seatbelts, driving without a driver's license, etc. We try to protect people from themselves in some of the worst aspects that we can. Second, of course, is health care costs.…

> It is a pretty interesting thought experiment to wonder whether people shouldn't be allowed to engage in organized sports that are risky, without paying an additional health insurance premium? E.g. if you play professional football, then your league has to pay extra money into the health insurance fund to compensate for all the extra health care treatment their players need and will need.

Isn't this already in use in multiple countries? I.e. if you want to play football (european) in a league, you have to have a license and also insurance that covers playing it in an organized way - for example in a league.

So team sports are already covered by such things, but individual sports like mountain biking or skiing aren't at the moment.

Re: Broken legs and ankles heal better if you walk on them within weeks

#279

Post by jack_pp »

interludead wrote: post #260
jack_pp wrote: post #84

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I had a broken collar bone last year in Bucharest and I moved back to my hometown because of it. I had to check in after a week or two to see how it's healing but was lazy about it so I went to the hospital after 3 weeks and was told there's a waiting list 10 days long and go to a private clinic. At the private clinic the doctor didn't even look at me, or the x-rays I just took and just told me to go into surgery bac…

Man, that's a wild ride just to get a proper diagnosis. It's crazy how much a doctor's attitude can shape recovery

I left out a bit, before I saw the doctor that told me surgery is the only way, I was consulted by another guy that was free and he scolded me because I came without the orthosis saying stuff like I don't want to get better and basically didn't even look at me or check my recovery after 3 weeks of wearing the orthosis. Told me to go to his private clinic and get a new orthosis where I decided to see any other doctor because I was put off by his attitude. I think the private clinic had a contract with the hospital I was sent to for the surgery or something.

Anyway thank God I found a decent doctor.

Re: Broken legs and ankles heal better if you walk on them within weeks

#280

Post by jalla »

kenjackson wrote: post #135
faitswulff wrote: post #6

If anyone's heard of RICE (Rest, Ice, Compression, Elevation) for healing joints, the new guidance is called POLICE: Protect, Optimal Load, Ice, Compression, and Elevation. The key differences being Protect and Optimal Load, meaning don't re-injure it and expose it to some level of weight-bearing or usage.

The guy who termed RICE (Gabe Mirkin) later came out and said he made a mistake. Specifically with the "Ice" part (and partially with Rest). See: https://drmirkin.com/fitness/why-ice-delays-recovery.html

Also, elevation is useless and compression is potentially harmful as restricting blood circulation and compressing tissue limits healing.
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