Stopped lengthening at 1cm…how will my recovery be?

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Hey everyone

I underwent LON for Tibias in the beginning of June. My aim was 3cm.

The Dr told me that during the surgery he will leave a gap of around 0.4cm.  I lengthen for only 6 days then had to stop for personal reasons. 

Basically, it was 13 days after my first surgery when I got the external frame removed.

I am now 3 weeks since the removal.

Currently walking around 1 hour a day on a walker (divided into six 10 minute walking sessions) and do the physio I have been instructed.  7 sets of exercises, 3 times a day.

Currently I do have pain in my knees but the Dr said it’s because I’m still in the early stages. I’m just scared that I hope I don’t develop chronic knee pain.

My question is, how long until I will be able to walk normally and sit and stand and do most basic things again?  I have never been the athletic person so I don’t care too much about extreme athleticcm, I’m just talking about normal function. 

Also when will the vast majority of the pain go away?

I will include my latest X-rays. They are from yesterday. Do they look good?

https://pasteboard.co/yYZfLPgyupCB.jpg
https://pasteboard.co/XDIzNozeMDUb.jpg
https://pasteboard.co/6YsxqP1YjX5y.jpg
https://pasteboard.co/nuq1fNRGDFdc.jpg

Thank you all so much. Again, before bashing me, it was extreme personal reasons that I had to stop the surgery.

Thanks guys, I just hope I can be normal again and not feel the pain.

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Your tibia appears to have an procurvatum deformity.
Has your doctor made any comments about the deformity?

https://slidetodoc.com/presentation_image_h/f064d33effba29136edbe00c0b9b73f7/image-17.jpg
https://custom-images.strikinglycdn.com/res/hrscywv4p/image/upload/c_limit,fl_lossy,h_9000,w_1200,f_auto,q_auto/845312/3e325ae1e46947deaaf7c0f2f6fbd1b8_nli8iy.png

You should consult with your physician, but you may need to install the frame again to correct the deformity.

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Quote from: maison on July 14, 2022, 11:07:54 AMYour tibia appears to have an procurvatum deformity.
Has your doctor made any comments about the deformity?

https://slidetodoc.com/presentation_image_h/f064d33effba29136edbe00c0b9b73f7/image-17.jpg
https://custom-images.strikinglycdn.com/res/hrscywv4p/image/upload/c_limit,fl_lossy,h_9000,w_1200,f_auto,q_auto/845312/3e325ae1e46947deaaf7c0f2f6fbd1b8_nli8iy.png

You should consult with your physician, but you may need to install the frame again to correct the deformity.

I just asked him now. His response was :

No, you have slight translation deformity. When your newly formed bone fills the gap your translation will disappear.  Translation deformity occured because we ended the lengthening earlier. New bone will fill your gap. Your joint angle is normal so you should just wait.

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Quote from: liltunechi on July 14, 2022, 11:27:26 AM
I just asked him now. His response was :

No, you have slight translation deformity. When your newly formed bone fills the gap your translation will disappear.  Translation deformity occured because we ended the lengthening earlier. New bone will fill your gap. Your joint angle is normal so you should just wait.

It looks to me like you have a 4-5 degree deformity in your tibia.

It is not a serious deformity and the deformity may become less noticeable in the future.

By the way, do you intend to do another bone lengthening once your personal problems are resolved?
If the deformity bothers you in the future, you can have it corrected at the time of revision surgery.

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Quote from: maison on July 14, 2022, 11:45:09 AMIt looks to me like you have a 4-5 degree deformity in your tibia.

It is not a serious deformity and the deformity may become less noticeable in the future.

By the way, do you intend to do another bone lengthening once your personal problems are resolved?
If the deformity bothers you in the future, you can have it corrected at the time of revision surgery.

Thank god it’s nothing serious. And most likely I won’t do this surgery again. The pain and mental torture is too much for me, you can call me weak etc, that’s fine.

When you say ‘the deformity bothers you’ do you mean in terms of aesthetics or pain?  Because I I really don’t want pain. One thing I realised is that I have a very low tolerance for pain and that’s why I’ll never do this surgery again.

Thank you brother

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My main concern about your deformity is a cosmetic issue.
Since it is not a major deformity, I think it is unlikely that you will develop chronic knee pain or other problems in the future.

However, I am not an expert and you should listen to the opinions of other doctors or members of this forum. If revision surgery is performed to correct the deformity after consolidation, it is very painful because of the osteotomy required.

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Quote from: maison on July 14, 2022, 12:06:23 PMMy main concern about your deformity is a cosmetic issue.
Since it is not a major deformity, I think it is unlikely that you will develop chronic knee pain or other problems in the future.

However, I am not an expert and you should listen to the opinions of other doctors or members of this forum. If revision surgery is performed to correct the deformity after consolidation, it is very painful because of the osteotomy required.

That’s good news then. I could give a damn about how it looks cosmetically. I never wear shorts anyways lol.

I wanted to ask you however, back to my original question, what should be the expected timeline for my recovery?  When should I be off the walker, and be able to walk normally without pain without any assistance? I’d love to hear a rough timeline.

I walk 1 hour everyday.  Everyday I try to add an extra 10 minutes.

I do my 7 sets of excercises 3 times a day as instructed by my physio.

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Quote from: liltunechi on July 14, 2022, 12:11:00 PMThat’s good news then. I could give a damn about how it looks cosmetically. I never wear shorts anyways lol.

I wanted to ask you however, back to my original question, what should be the expected timeline for my recovery?  When should I be off the walker, and be able to walk normally without pain without any assistance? I’d love to hear a rough timeline.

I walk 1 hour everyday.  Everyday I try to add an extra 10 minutes.

I do my 7 sets of excercises 3 times a day as instructed by my physio.

Is it the knee, not the osteotomy, where you feel the strong pain?

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Quote from: liltunechi on July 14, 2022, 11:59:12 AM
Thank god it’s nothing serious. And most likely I won’t do this surgery again. The pain and mental torture is too much for me, you can call me weak etc, that’s fine.

When you say ‘the deformity bothers you’ do you mean in terms of aesthetics or pain?  Because I I really don’t want pain. One thing I realised is that I have a very low tolerance for pain and that’s why I’ll never do this surgery again.

Thank you brother

Only people who haven't had the surgery would call you weak or a wimp for backing out at 1 cm.

This surgery is something else entirely to the comfortable coddled life the majority of people have been accustomed to so you know yourself best how you have reacted to the stress of the surgery and if your decision was to quit early thats your prerogative.

With that said, unfortunately, even 1cm is enough to start the long and uncomfortable process of being able to walk normal again, let alone run. My suggestion is to attempt moving from walker to crutches as soon as you can handle it as only crutches will help you get back to normal walking. So, a lot of crutch walking until one day you are comfortable enough to support yourself on one crutch, and then one day just like that you will feel confident enough to pick up the crutch from the ground and walk with the crutch hovering above the ground.
This is how you will get back to normal. We cannot give you a time frame as every one is different. But 2 hours of walking per day is the standard

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Quote from: maison on July 14, 2022, 01:07:06 PMIs it the knee, not the osteotomy, where you feel the strong pain?

I feel pain in the osteotomy area but what I feel in the knee I wouldn’t call sharp pain. It’s just annoying tenderness. Very nagging. Feels sore.  The Dr told me it’s because of how early the surgery is, so I am hopeful.  I just hope it doesn’t sustain and I hope I don’t develop any chronic knee issues.

What do you think?  How long would you say it’s normal to feel a nagging soreness and tenderness in the knee area after this surgery?