Tennis Trials and Tribulations

Jeff is now part of the walking wounded! We were playing social tennis last Thursday night, and he lunged forward for a ball. He heard a loud pop, felt immediate pain in his lower leg and hobbled off the court. I went over to have a look at it, thinking that he had just sprained his ankle. I saw and felt a large lump behind his ankle, above his heel, and his range of motion was limited. I was inclined to pat him on the head and apply the RICE treatment, but as I was in doubt I asked if he wanted to go to the Emergency Dept, thinking he would say no. He must have been in some pain as he said yes! The doctor on duty suspected a tear to the Achilles Tendon, plastered it, and had him go back Friday morning for an ultrasound. He had the ultrasound, and then was immediately taken off for a referral with an Orthopaedic Specialist.

Well it turns out that he has completely ruptured his Achilles Tendon. He had surgery to repair the tear on Tuesday night. He'll then be in plaster for 6 weeks, and the plaster will get changed every fortnight with positional adjustments to his foot to stretch the repaired tendon. Then he will have to wear a moonboot for another 6 weeks, followed by 8-12 months of physiotherapy.

No riding for Jeff for the forseeable future!

And the worst part is....I have to move my own bike! Sheesh!

Physical activity is the obvious cause here. Silly boy.
Due to the associated dangers I prefer to abstain as it's not worth the risk.

Lets not also forget you have your own bar at home so hardly any need to move at all except to get to the pisser occassionally

Bad news there Anne, thats a real bugga of an injury.... hope the healing goes well

I'll give him $50 posted for the zeddy

I'll give him $50 posted for the zeddy

What a guy, there ya go Anne, saves ya moving the bike

A loud pop and you were tempted to pat him on the head?! You must be hard to impress.

At least he didn't injure himself doing something lame...

like, falling out of the bath trying to paint his toenails etc...

I'll give him $50 posted for the zeddy

What a guy, there ya go Anne, saves ya moving the bike

Hang on, which Zeddy, mine the Z750 or Jeff's the Z1000? I would expect at least $75 for the Z1000! Inflation counts But Dave, if you want to move it from the sidepath and reverse it around the corner into the garage for the price of a donut, come over!

At least he didn't injure himself doing something lame...

like, falling out of the bath trying to paint his toenails etc...

How did you guess Dave! Although that was last week...

A loud pop and you were tempted to pat him on the head?! You must be hard to impress.

I'm a nurse, we are all hard to impress! Unless there is a bit of bone poking out of the skin, it doesn't warrant the effort on our behalf!

Michelle did a similar thing going for a ball someone else was going for, they both kicked it. Long story short is she got her achillies and the front tendon torn 90-95% through. Fortunately she didn't have a need for surgery and just went straight to the moonboot and a couple hours of physio for every day for 4 months. Hearing what you're blokes going through it definitely confirms not needing an op is the preferred choice.

Good luck to you both, him for healing and ou for our sanity.

At least if you go for a ride now, he can't hang around and hassle you (hint: turn the mobile off from time to time )

lots luck.

Well...he's done it again..... (idiot....)

Jeff had his surgery and was in a cast for five weeks, which was removed Wednesday week ago. He had been in an ortheopaedic boot since, and for the next 6 weeks or so.

He decided to ride the bike to work last Monday, against the orthopod & physio's advice. The bike's engine was still cold, so when he went into a steep off-camber corner, the engine cut out. Well, gravity works, and the bike went down. He tried to save it and instinctively put his foot down, which happened to be the one that had been injured. As he took the weight, he heard the pop and felt the immediate pain, and just knew it had ruptured again.

So, he had surgery again on Friday, and this time the Orthopod had to use a synthetic tendon, as the damage was too extensive. He had some complications after surgery, but came out of hospital today. He is in some serious pain this time (he had very little pain last time), and is like a bear with a sore tooth! This time he will probably be in the plaster cast for 8 weeks, then, the orthapaedic boot for another 6-8 weeks (lets hope we get past three days next time!). He'll most likely have a permanent limp as a result of the extra damage. Unfortunately, that will learn him for trying to push the healing along too early!

Bloody men!

.... but did he save the bike?