Life After Total Ankle Replacement 

Dealing with chronic ankle pain can severely limit your mobility and make your everyday life incredibly difficult.

In many cases, chronic ankle pain is the result of ankle arthritis, a condition that causes joint inflammation and swelling. As the condition progresses, the slippery, lubricating cartilage surrounding your ankle joint can wear away, and the structure of the joint can suffer damage.

Since your ankles support so much of your weight, getting around can be challenging. And while there are several treatment options that can manage arthritis and slow down its progression, at some point, an ankle replacement might be the best option for restoring mobility.

At Foot and Ankle Institute of Colorado in Colorado Springs, Colorado, podiatry experts Matthew Hinderland, DPM, Jordan Cameron, DPM, Trevor Whiting, DPM, and the rest of our team perform total ankle replacement surgery when conservative methods haven’t been effective to manage pain and other arthritis symptoms.

In this month’s blog, we discuss the ankle replacement process, including what to expect from your surgery results.

How does ankle replacement surgery work?

Ankle replacement surgery isn’t a first line of treatment, but if your ankle arthritis hasn’t responded to lifestyle modifications or conservative treatments, such as physical therapy or cortisone injections, an ankle replacement is the logical next step. 

The goal of ankle replacement surgery is to remove the old joint, clear out any damaged tissue, and construct a new artificial ankle joint with metal components. 

At the start of surgery, our team administers general anesthesia to ensure comfort for the whole procedure. Then, your provider makes an incision to gain access to your ankle joint. After he removes the joint and cleans out any debris, he puts the metal one in the old one’s place before closing the incision.

Since ankle replacement surgery is a major surgical procedure, you’ll need an overnight stay in the hospital to recover before heading home for the remainder of the recovery process. 

Recovering from ankle replacement surgery 

Full recovery from ankle replacement surgery can take anywhere from 6-12 months. To fully understand what happens during each phase of the recovery process, we’ve broken it down here:

Initial at-home recovery

For the first four weeks after surgery, your ankle is immobilized, and you can’t put any weight on it, using crutches to move around. 

During the first two weeks, your ankle is in a cast and needs to stay elevated above your heart at all times, except for when you eat meals or get up to use the bathroom. 

After those two weeks, our team takes out the surgical stitches and replaces your cast with a removable boot. You can remove the boot while showering and sleeping, but your ankle still needs to stay elevated as much as possible. 

Rehabilitation and physical therapy 

Once those first four weeks have passed, you start working on strengthening your ankle and gaining back some mobility by attending physical therapy. You can also start putting some pressure on your ankle while still wearing your boot.

After the eight-week mark, you can start wearing regular shoes again. 

Moving beyond recovery 

When you’re four months post-surgery, your ankle should be feeling better than it did before you had surgery. At six months post-surgery, you should be mostly recovered, though full recovery is typically at the one-year mark. 

After your full recovery, you can resume most physical activities, such as walking and playing golf or tennis. However, to ensure that your ankle replacement lasts as long as possible, you should avoid running and jumping, unless they’re absolutely necessary. 

To learn more about what to expect before or after ankle replacement surgery, schedule an appointment with our team by calling our office or using our online booking feature today.