4. What are the symptoms?
Symptoms usually include pain on the outside of the foot, swelling, bruising, and pain with walking.
5. What is the treatment?
Treatment usually consists of immobilization in a cast. Patients are not usually allowed to place weight on the foot until the fracture heals. When the fracture does not heal, it is usually caused by a lack of blood supply to the bone. When this happens, surgery is warranted.
6. What does surgery entail?
Surgery, usually reserved for competitive athletes like professional football players, involves making a small incision on the outside of the foot and placing a screw inside the bone, a plate, or wires. Sometimes, bone from another part of your body or cadaver is used to add structural support to the fixation and stimulate the healing process.
7. What is the recovery time?
Most fractures take about 6-8 weeks to heal in a cast, splint or walking boot. If a bone graft is required, this may add additional 3-6 weeks. After this time period, rehab usually begins and can last an another 2-3 weeks. For athletes, this can be a season-ending injury.
Antonio J. Webb, M.D. is an Orthopaedic Resident Surgeon, Iraq combat veteran, motivational speaker and author of “Overcoming the Odds: From war on the streets of Louisiana to war on terrorism in Iraq, how I successfully overcame the odds.” Follow him: Facebook: Facebook.com/awebbmd Instagram: @overcomingtheoddsbook Twitter: @drwebb82 Amazon:amazon.com/author/antoniowebbmd
Dallas Cowboys’ Dez Bryant Foot Injury: 7 Things To Know About A Jones Fracture was originally published on blackdoctor.org
