Drop Foot After Joint Replacement: Is it Permanent?
Drop foot after joint replacement: is it Permanent? Drop foot, although rare, can occur after hip or knee replacement surgery. If it does occur, is permanent? Drop foot is when a patient is unable to “dorsiflex the ankle” which means bring the toes and foot up towards the direction of their head.
What are drop foot causes? Drop foot is a result of an injury to a nerve. It could be a direct traumatic injury to a nerve, which is really rare, or it can be more of a stretch injury to the nerve. A stretch injury means that during the surgery – sometimes part of the normal correction of the patient’s deformity – the nerve was stretched. For example, if a patient has a really short leg because of hip arthritis, when you put the leg back to its normal spot, you may stretch out some of the nerves. As well as when you do a knee replacement, if someone has a really crooked leg, by straightening that knee out, which is a normal goal of surgery, everything gets a little bit stretch.
There’s no real definition as to how much stretch is okay and how much isn’t, so unfortunately sometimes patients will have a drop foot. It’s extremely rare, probably less than 1% as far as a complication rate. There are cases where it is temporary but it can also be permanent. If it is permanent, there may be other treatments that are available. If the nerve doesn’t heal on its own braces or surgery can be used to help fix the problem.
Play this video to hear what Dr. John Tiberi, orthopedic surgeon in Los Angeles and Southern California has to say about the subject in full (https://www.healthgrades.com/physician/dr-john-tiberi-x3dl7).
DISCLAIMER: The information contained herein should NOT be used as a substitute for the advice of an appropriately qualified and licensed physician or other health care provider. The information provided here is for informational purposes only.”
PeerWell
PreHab and ReHab Mobile App for Joint Replacement Surgery Patients
https://www.peerwell.co/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/jointreplacementsupport
Video URL: https://youtu.be/Ou9LTPDNVOE
Drop Foot After Joint Replacement: Is it Permanent?
Drop foot after joint replacement: is it Permanent? Drop foot, although rare, can occur after hip or knee replacement surgery. If it does occur, is permanent? Drop foot is when a patient is unable to “dorsiflex the ankle” which means bring the toes and foot up towards the direction of their head.
What are drop foot causes? Drop foot is a result of an injury to a nerve. It could be a direct traumatic injury to a nerve, which is really rare, or it can be more of a stretch injury to the nerve. A stretch injury means that during the surgery – sometimes part of the normal correction of the patient’s deformity – the nerve was stretched. For example, if a patient has a really short leg because of hip arthritis, when you put the leg back to its normal spot, you may stretch out some of the nerves. As well as when you do a knee replacement, if someone has a really crooked leg, by straightening that knee out, which is a normal goal of surgery, everything gets a little bit stretch.
There’s no real definition as to how much stretch is okay and how much isn’t, so unfortunately sometimes patients will have a drop foot. It’s extremely rare, probably less than 1% as far as a complication rate. There are cases where it is temporary but it can also be permanent. If it is permanent, there may be other treatments that are available. If the nerve doesn’t heal on its own braces or surgery can be used to help fix the problem.
Play this video to hear what Dr. John Tiberi, orthopedic surgeon in Los Angeles and Southern California has to say about the subject in full (https://www.healthgrades.com/physician/dr-john-tiberi-x3dl7).
DISCLAIMER: The information contained herein should NOT be used as a substitute for the advice of an appropriately qualified and licensed physician or other health care provider. The information provided here is for informational purposes only.”
PeerWell
PreHab and ReHab Mobile App for Joint Replacement Surgery Patients
https://www.peerwell.co/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/jointreplacementsupport
Video URL: https://youtu.be/Ou9LTPDNVOE
Drop Foot After Joint Replacement: Is it Permanent?
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