Any Peroneal Nerve recovery stories?

[Shumster]

Steven,

I'll do my best to answer your questions. Ok, well I had a 9cm cable graft on my peroneal just above the knee. The graft is just above my fibular head. From what I have heard nerve transfers have a decent success rate. What was your donor nerve? I had no dorsiflexion or eversion before surgery and am 2 weeks post op now. I have been getting some weird nerve pain in my foot and around my knee though. My advice is to work a little bit everyday by thinking about pulling your foot up. I was also told that when I am getting nerve pain that I should try and imagine bringing my foot up as it allows connections to form. Another tip I got from my doc was that I should massage the numb areas on my foot as that can also help develop connections. In terms of your tib ant I am not totally sure...I have heard about people that have regained dorsiflexion after a year or two though. If your sciatic is compromised do you have any feeling on your leg? You said you can planter flex though so that must mean that your tibial nerve is working. Also, what length of your nerve was damaged? Just keep working at it and don't give up!

Take it easy,

Shumster

[LucyR]

43 years ago, at 17, I had knee surgery to remove a dead piece of bone from my inner knee.... Osteoconditis dessicans was the diagnosis.  Instead of waking up from surgery with little pain, I woke up and remember vividly that my leg was on "fire"... Over the top with pain. The nurses thought I was being  dramatic until they discovered that I had no feeling in my leg and had foot drop.  They plaster casted my leg, sent me home, saying time will tell whether it was pinched or severed. This is what I remember.

My feeling came back. I gained strength again. I think it took about six months. What I didn't realize was I did not gain back the ability to feel inner knee pain.  Fast forward decades later.  Not until my late 40's did I notice my knee swelling and stiffness.  In my 50's, my ability to walk for long periods became more limited each year. Finally, I could walk 30 minutes, then EXTREME fatigue would set in and I would have to stop. I learned to think in terms of how many steps will it take for me to do grocery shopping. At 55, my leg was severely bowed. I had a pronounced limp. 

During my 50's, I saw three knee surgeons, none of which gave a name to my lack of knee pain in spite of being bone on bone. They each refused to do knee surgery, saying I was too young.  Finally after two Back surgeries in 2010, my spinal neurosurgeon said I had to get my knee fixed or face continued back problems... He recommended a knee ortho doctor who examined me and said that i was a high risk for knee replacement because I had no pain. He agreed to do the surgery.

I am now 8 weeks post op and loving the thought of walking, vacations, and golf in the near future!  My new knee is working great! I have no limp . My range of motion is 135 because I recovered with very little discomfort from the surgery....just typicall stiffness and swelling, which i was very accustomed to feeling. I have some strength to gain back, like everyone else. I finally was able to reap the benefits from perineal nerve damage and give it a name. 

[spm395]

Shum

They took nerve out of my same leg but in my calf. Have a scar going from my ankle to a few inches below my knee. I think they put in 30cm of nerve. The nerve they took out gave me feeling in the outside of my foot so I no longer will have feeling there anymore but I will sacrifice some feeling in my foot to get it to move again. I have feeling in my thigh just not where the scar is on the back of my leg. Would be nice if nerves healed faster than a 1" a month!!

[BIGEL]

After 16 mos. since my injury and and 6 mos. post decompression nerve surgery, I'm finally able to walk without my afo.  Yesterday I cleaned out my basement and hauled junk to the curb without the afo.  Hopefully I can get back to 100% in a few months in time for the summer.   I credit my recovery to working out the anterior tib. 2x daily and a great PT.  Also a pair of lightweight sneakers was instrumental.  New Balance, Adidias and Saucony worked best for me. I also purchased a pair of lightwieght dress shoes as well from Payless Shoes.  All of my footwear enabled me to install my afo as well.  I still have issues with atrophy which may take years to correct, but I'm truly greatful. Oh, yes the power of prayer helped!

The first 9 mos. after my injury I would read these posts and I read them all.  The injuries mentioned were all serious some more serious than others of course but all were connected by the foot drop.  Knowing that you are not alone and the support provided through the posts has inspired me.  Keep the post going and those who are reading only should join in.  I wish you all a speedy recovery!   

[Shumster]

Hi guys, I was just wondering for those of you that have recovered from foot drop your opinions on e-stim. I currently am a month post-op peroneal nerve graft surgery and am wondering if I should be using e-stim at physio. Any thoughts or insights would be appreciated!

Take care everyone!

Shum

[BIGEL]

My PT said you can, but change your pads often.  Check with your Dr. first.

[flipflopfoot]

Hi folks,

I had my peroneal nerve grafted yesterday (21/03/12). There was a 14cm nerve farmed from the back of my calf. I wil of course keep you posted on any recovery - I have been told not very likely due to this being 1 year since the leg break which severed the nerve.

My questions today - if anyone out there can answer is what was the immediate recovery advise was in terms of how plaster, leg brace etc? I was originally told I need a back slab plaster on for three days then a knee brace with 0-30 degree flex for 3-4 weeks. I have ended up with the knee brace on, on day 2 locked out straight which I can then release myself to 30 deg after day 3. The brace is to stop the nerve re-tearing and so much emphasis has been put on this I am terrified to move, but would have thought it would take some force to damage again to this extent!

Now to settle down and read the 55 pages of this thread!!

[Shumster]

Hey flipflopfoot great to have you around.

How long was the peroneal nerve damage? Was the nerve severed or no? After my nerve graft all I had was some compression bandages. Normal flexion is ok, from what I have heard from my docs the grafts are actually fairly strong, normal flexion should be fine as long as you don't force anything. Did you have any dorsiflexion or eversion before surgery? I'm a month post-op now and still haven't seen any motor function return but i'm staying optimistic!

Take care and good luck with recovery!

[flipflopfoot]

Hi Shumster thanks for replying.

My injury occurred 11 months ago so quite a long wait to repairing the nerve. My foot presses down permanently straight rather than to the side, I can flick to the side and press down but not move up at all - no change so far on day 3. Full leg brace locked to 30 degrees seems a bit excessive then compared to what you were told!

Good luck with yours let me know when you feel anything - I have been told 12 months to recovery but less than 50% likely.

[spm395]

BIGEL-

What kind of exercises were you doing for your ant tib? I am over a year and a half since my injury so I need something to try and keep whatever is left of my ant tib.  I have heard after 18 months if you don't work your ant tib it will not work even if the signal is going through the nerve.

[BIGEL]

SPM395,

If your foot is weight bearing try these exercises with or without shoes:

http://www.livestrong.com/article/477065-how-to-strengthen-the-tibialis-anterior/

Also work your quads (this allows you to bend & kneel. Due to immobility you can lose muscle there as well), by having your back against the wall and kneeling at the same time.  I used a large ball to bounce to keep my mine off the time.  I'm at 4:25 mins.  Start at whatever time you can handle and increase as you progress.

Calf stretches & drop foot stretch (my left foot suffers from drop foot so while standing, I bring my left leg and foot over and across my right foot and I begin by placing my pinky toe side against the floor and simply stretching.  You may feel some sparkling nerve pain but that's fine.  At least you'll know the nerve is still in tact. lol.  Hold for 10 sec. then I place the drop foot back over to the left side and put my big toe side against the floor & hold for 10 secs.  10x each leg. 

These are just a few, I work out for about an hour.  Also use the tens unit as well.  I hope this was helpful!

[cavaleechy]

Hi All,
I am really hoping that someone can help me as this forum has been more informative than the hospital so far.
My girlfriend came to Dubai on holiday with her sister and was in a car accident, which fractured her left hip socket, resulting in sciatic nerve plasy.  There appears to have been no operation to nerves as per medical report, but she has had a EMG,ENG & nerve conduction study with the following results:

Normal distal motor latency, conduction velocity with severely reduced EMR amplitude for left peroneal nerve
Normal motor conduction studies for bilateral tibial nerves
Normal motor conduction velocity with slightly reduced EMR amplitude for Right peroneal nerve
Normal Response latencies for bilateral deep peroneal nerve but severely reduced EMR amplitude on the Left
Delayed F-wave latency for Left peroneal Nerve (normal for Right)
Needle EMG for left tib: Anterior muscles showed no sponteneous or volitional activities.

Comments: EMG and nerve conduction study results show evidence for severe injury to left peroneal nerve proximally. There is no evidence of left lumbosacral plexopathy or L5 radioculopathy.

Physically she has foot drop, numbness to her anterior mucles and foot. She can only move here toes slightly downwards.
She is on crutches and all she was given post-discharge was a standard preformed foot drop splint (which she was told only to wear at night) and some gauze tied into a rope to do what I think are 'towel pull exercises'.

There seems to be various doctors telling us different periods of recovery and the medical report just says she may need surgery later on, with no indication of what type or for how long.

To make matters worse we have to put togther a claim list for the insurance company, but I have no idea when for example she will be able to walk without crutches and go back to work or even what possible future operations/phisio she may need. Also what sort of specialist do I need to speak to? Neurologist?

Can any of you please advise on anything you think may help?

many thanks in advance

[Shumster]

Hi, I'm so sorry to hear about your girlfriend's accident.
Sorry I'm no doctor so I'm not going to try and analyse those results. However from my experience with foot drop I know that it is very important to keep the foot in a neutral or slightly dorsiflexed position as often as possible. Sleeping is especially critical. After my injury I would use pillows and towels to prop my foot at a neutral position and I can tell you that it will help a lot. Keeping the foot from dropping will prevent the achilles from shortening and help the foot have a better natural position. My foot sits naturally just a few degrees below neutral and that is credited to all the work I did keeping the foot braced immediately post injury. You should speak with a neurologist or neurosurgeon that has experience with peripheral nerve injuries. They will hopefully be able to decide on a plan of action whether it be surgery or waiting it out to see if the nerve regenerates. Likely they will want to wait a few months to see if any regeneration occurs. Feel free to ask any other questions, i'll be glad to do my best to answer.

Take it easy,

Shumster

[BIGEL]

Cavaleechy,

Like Shum mentioned, its important to keep the foot in a neutral position.  I purchased a lightwieght Dorsi-lite footsplint for $50.00, that she can use for walking at home when she's ready & is good for showering, sleeping and swimming as well.  Its a great product and I have used it for all four.  Go to www.X-strap.com to view it.  If you decide to buy it get the extra straps too for $15.  Depending on how she uses it, the extra straps will come in handy when the straps become frayed.  Also request for a Dynamic AFO with a toe lift.  When she is able to put weight on her leg this afo will make walking alot easier.  Speak to a Ortho and a Neuro physician.  Be patient, its a long road to recovery.  I'm approaching my 17 month since my injury.

                                                                                                                                      Bigel   

[Shumster]

Hey everyone,
I just saw this article and was wondering if anyone had tried anything like this. I've been looking for an alternative to my AFO as it prevents me from wearing dress shoes and such...
http://www.dynamicchiropractic.ca/mpacms/dc_ca/article.php?id=55297