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Micro fracture surgery
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Anyone have this done? What is recovery like? What was your injury?


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Re: Micro fracture surgery [wenzel87] [ In reply to ]
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Left knee in 2006. It took a lot of work but I did come back and raced 5 Ironmans (Kona twice) post scope. Documented my rehab here.

http://www.kneeguru.co.uk/...ex.php?topic=27186.0
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Re: Micro fracture surgery [wenzel87] [ In reply to ]
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Left knee cap in 2012. I have a 1cm hole in the cartilage on the interior patellar surface. Procedure was not effective and 9mos later, MRI confirmed that the intended scar tissue did not develop. Apparently, patellar injury is the least likely place for this procedure to be effective. 18mos later, I still have pain, especially up and down stairs or running downhill, but I deal with it. Raced IM Lake Tahoe 1 year after surgery--the run was pretty ugly.


Twitter: @blues2play
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Re: Micro fracture surgery [wenzel87] [ In reply to ]
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I had it done late October, after doing Kona with a 16 mile grueling walk/drag/grind of the teeth to bear the pain during the marathon. I am in a 2 month plateau where improvement has been minimal. I was cleared by the surgeon to jog lightly March 1 but I still have pain just walking and putting drawers on flamingo leg style, so I haven't tried yet. Knee is swollen and misshapen 6 months later but it isn't scaring away the kids at least. I have a long road ahead of me I understand and it is a major test of my attitude. I can bike and swim just fine, but running is going to put me at square 1.

MRI in 3 weeks. If it doesn't show sufficient growth I'm getting some new cartilage from a dude that went belly up. And another 6 weeks of crutches I assume.

Snakes have it right. Knees suck.....

Cheers,

thechromedome
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Re: Micro fracture surgery [thechromedome] [ In reply to ]
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Hoping mine goes well, thanks for all the replies. I have been trying to let this issue heal by resting but it was not! I have a left lateral femoral trochlea stress fracture. My articulate cartilage is intact with no defect. So I was hoping with rest it would heal. I have not ran or biked since 11/24. I have been swimming and wt training upper body only. I had a MRI 1/3/14 and a follow up MRI on 2/28, which showed little to no improvement. My ortho at that point wanted to do the micro fracture surgery but i was not ready so we tried the exogen bone stimulator for 6 weeks. I am now at the end of that 6 weeks with little improvement so off to surgery I go. Hoping my recovery is a let less than the ones I am reading about due to the fact that currently I have no cartage damage. My ortho is just worried about osteonecrosis.
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Re: Micro fracture surgery [wenzel87] [ In reply to ]
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December 11, 2013 I had mfx on a 1.1 x 1.2 cm full thickness defect on my left lateral trouclar groove. Weight bearing as tolerated on day one without a brace, on crutches for two weeks, one crutch for another week. Allowed in the pool at 4 weeks, and on the indoor bike trainer without resistance at 8 weeks, where I started a 6 week ramp up to an hour of riding at the low side of my endurance wattage. Started a return to running program at 14 weeks that was really just a slow walk/fast walk program for two weeks before I was allowed to actually jog. At 16 weeks I did 100 meters walk, 100 meters jog. The leg still feels weak and I ran about .3 miles total. Next run was .6 miles total and the third (yesterday) was 1 mile total. A bit sore the next day (today) but nothing that would be considered abnormal. The cycling has been coming along nicely the past 4 weeks, getting stronger each ride. My OS says that at my age (50 in September) it takes 6 months to regain full strength. So far all signs are showing a successful procedure. I have another doc appointment in 1 week, so hopefully more good news. My ultimate goals is to return to Oly distance races. And maybe a HIM now and then.

The post op mental challenge is that if you do any online research on the recovery protocol from mfx surgery, you'll find that it's all over the place. With some OS, your in the brace for 6 to 8 weeks, some (like my OS) your not at all. Some allow the return to cycling with full range of motion (which I had in less than 3 weeks) and some not until much later...etc, etc. I guess the key is to find an experienced doc and follow their rehab exactly. Its seems as if the most common error patients make is not following the post op instructions, in stressing the fibrocartilage patch before it has time to take hold and mature.
Last edited by: Tri-Mot: Apr 17, 14 13:27
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Re: Micro fracture surgery [wenzel87] [ In reply to ]
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1.5 cm hole in the cartilage in my right knee. I had the surgery done in April 2004, which was two years before I even knew what a triathlon was. After a long rehab process, I started running again 6 months post-op, and did my first tri in late 2006. Since then, the knees seem to be holding up quite well, haha! ;-)

I was very conservative with rehab. After 2-weeks of complete non-weight-bearing, I then progressed to 6 weeks of just "re-establishing range of motion". Eight weeks post-op, I did one minute on a rowing machine. The next day, I did two minutes. Next day was three minutes. You see the pattern developing here...

Then, 6 months post-op, I ran one minute. Then did a progression of increasing one minute per day, every other day. Maybe I was overly conservative, but when coming back from a surgery like that, where post-op healing is such a huge part of the process, I think conservative is the way to go.

The only time I have any pain now is with one-legged squats. Which... whatever. I'm ok with those not being a big part of my life...

Point being - there is a light at the end of the tunnel if you're persistent & patient with your rehab...
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Re: Micro fracture surgery [wenzel87] [ In reply to ]
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can you update on the microfracture procedure/recover
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