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Haglund's Deformity surgery recovery
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I have just been scheduled for surgery having suffered from Haglund's for 4-5 years..

Anyone on the forum been through that and lived to tell the tale :-)?

How was the recovery period
Are you back to 'old' running - how long did it take
Any regrets?
etc. etc.

Basically, let me hear your stories and if you are happy with the result
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Re: Haglund's Deformity surgery recovery [Bo225] [ In reply to ]
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I had it several years ago. I tore my Achillies because of it. I did PT for 3 months ahead of surgery. Had surgery mid March and started running June 1. Do what your doctor and PT tell you to do and you'll be fine.
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Re: Haglund's Deformity surgery recovery [Bo225] [ In reply to ]
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Recover is greatly affected by how the surgery is done, so any anecdotes on recovery, you would want to know that important piece of info (i.e. lateral incision, under the tendon or achilles splitting/reattachment, etc.)

____________________________________
Fatigue is biochemical, not biomechanical.
- Andrew Coggan, PhD
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Re: Haglund's Deformity surgery recovery [rroof] [ In reply to ]
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Had the surgery January of 2008 at 35 years of age. 10-15% of achilles tendon was cut to be able to get to deformity, which was cut off and filed smooth. The surgeon scored the tendon and performed radio-frequency ablation. Immediate aftermath (4-5 days) was painful, one of the few times in my life I've used narcotic pain meds. Was running 3 months later. Did 100 mile backpacking trip at 5 months. Had fairly intense pain early on while running and hiking, but that eventually calmed down and I've been able to run more than ever in years since, including a lot of 70-80 mile weeks, 6 marathons in the 2:50-2:59 range, and a 1:17 half. The tendon has never reached 100% and remains a weak point, but is much better than before surgery. I can do whatever I want now in terms of running, although I do get some pain and tightness when running higher mileage. Feels ok up to 40 miles per week, but I definitely feel it when I'm running more. Eccentric heel drops have helped. I'm also conservative about heel-toe drop (I stay in the 9-12 mm range) and race in shoes that are sort of on the border between racing flats and lightweight trainers. Glad I had the surgery. Before that I was only running about 25 miles/week and using orthotics. Each year my PT would add a higher heel lift to take the stress off the tendon. This wasn't sustainable, and even with this approach I wasn't able to run much. Being able to do pretty much whatever I want to again for the past 8 years has been great. Good luck!
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Re: Haglund's Deformity surgery recovery [kstoltzfus] [ In reply to ]
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I want to bump this thread and ask a question about the transition back into running. It was mentioned that it was rather painful when you first starting back into running. Can you elaborate more on the type of pain and location? I am four weeks post op from Insertional Achilles debridement with Haglund's deformity surgery and have been cleared to start running again slowly. I am experiencing a bit of pain at the Achilles insertion point on the inside of heal. What concerns me is running through the pain is what got me to the point of needing the surgery in the first place, and while what I feel now is not like it was prior to surgery I also do not want to push it.
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Re: Haglund's Deformity surgery recovery [ronc185] [ In reply to ]
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It has now been approx 16 months since I had my surgery... I started running a few times after the surgery, but stopped again as the pain reappeared. Speaking to the doctor, he assured me, that it was because the achilles was still inflamed (having been so for maybe 5 years) and it would take time for the inflammation to subside.

After the latest attempt (after maybe 4-5 months), we agreed that I should wait until after 12 months after the surgery has passed before running again.

I now run, and it seems fine - but I'm also very careful not to push the distance or the frequency at the moment. I can still feel some sensation after a run and the day after, but I can't make up my mind whether it is the inflammation I feel or just the scar tissue that is sensitive - or if it is just me being hyper sensitive about everything in that area...

It is not pain as such - more a sort of 'nervous tingling' in the area where the scar is..

If I was you, I would be very careful and not run through anything...Take a few more weeks of rest and try again..
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Re: Haglund's Deformity surgery recovery [Bo225] [ In reply to ]
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Thanks for getting back to me!

How painful was your PT? I have had a fair amount on the same area I mentioned before. I would say it is probably in the area where the achilles was reattached after the deformity was removed. Talking to my PT I should expect a fair amount of pain in that area as I strengthen it, however it is hard to quantify pain level. She ended it with it will be painful but not too painful. If you do too much you will hurt it, which is not very helpful.

Most of the exercises were core related, with the addition of lungs, heal drops and single leg balances. As I progressed I have added a few miles of walking followed by 1/2 - 1 mile of slow running towards the end, just to feel things out. The pain is not worse then what I experience in the strengthening exercises but it is not pain free either.

I think I will take your advice and eliminate the walking/running portion of my therapy just to be on the safe side.
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Re: Haglund's Deformity surgery recovery [ronc185] [ In reply to ]
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I haven't done any PT since before the surgery...Doctors just ordered rest...Did a fair bit prior.

I was lucky in that they didn't need to remove/reattach my achilles to remove the deformity, though.
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