🍽Diet
- Begin with clear liquids and light foods (jello, soup, toast, etc…)
- Progress slowly back to your pre-op diet as tolerated
- Try to avoid taking narcotics on an empty stomach to avoid nausea
🩹Wound Care
- Take good care of your operative dressing and splint. Do not remove your splint or cast unless instructed.
- It is normal for the ankle to bleed slightly and swell after surgery.
- If blood soaks through the dressing, do not panic. Reinforce with additional dressings as needed.
- If steri-strips are present, they should remain in place until your first post-operative visit.
- Keep your dressing and splint clean and dry. Cover with a waterproof bag for showering. NO immersion of the leg in water (i.e., bath or pool).
💊Medications
- A local or regional anesthetic block is often used during surgery and will wear off in approximately 8-24 hours. Begin your prescribed pain medication before the block fully wears off so you stay ahead of the pain.
- Most patients will require a short period of narcotic pain medication. This should be taken as directed on the bottle.
- Norco (hydrocodone/Tylenol) or Percocet (oxycodone/Tylenol)
- Take 1-2 tablets every 4-6 hours as needed for pain.
- Maximum of 12 pills per 24 hour period.
- Do NOT take additional Tylenol (acetaminophen) while taking these medications. Many products contain this medication (cough meds, cold meds) and can lead to liver damage.
- Common side effects of narcotic pain medications are nausea, drowsiness, and constipation. Use a stool softener (Colace, senokot) or laxative (Miralax) as needed.
- Aspirin (81mg or 325mg, as instructed by your doctor) should be taken daily to gently thin the blood and decrease your risk of a DVT/blood clot.
- If you are having problems with nausea and vomiting, call the office to see if the medication should be changed or additional medications prescribed.
- Journavx (suzetrigine): If you were prescribed Journavx, take 2 tablets (your one-time starting dose) with a small sip of water before leaving home the morning of surgery. Then take 1 tablet every 12 hours, starting 12 hours after your first dose, as directed. Take the starting dose on an empty stomach, and avoid grapefruit while taking this medication.
- Do not drive a car or operate heavy machinery while taking narcotics.
🏃Activity
- Keep the leg elevated above heart level as much as possible for the first 1-2 weeks to control swelling.
- Use crutches initially. Weight-bearing is advanced in your boot as directed — many patients begin protected weight-bearing in the boot with heel wedges within the first 2 weeks; follow your surgeon's specific instructions.
- Do not place weight on the foot without your boot on.
- No driving until cleared by your medical team (especially for a right-leg procedure).
- Perform gentle toe motion as allowed to help reduce the risk of a blood clot.
🥾Walking Boot
- You will be placed in a splint or a CAM walker boot with heel wedges that hold the foot pointed slightly downward to protect the repair.
- Wear the boot at all times, including while sleeping, until instructed otherwise.
- Heel wedges are removed gradually (typically about one every 1-2 weeks) to bring the foot to a neutral position by around 6 weeks — follow your surgeon's schedule.
- Do NOT stretch the tendon or pull your toes up toward you (no forced upward bending of the ankle) until cleared.
❄Ice Therapy
- Begin immediately after surgery
- Use ice machine or ice packs every 2 hours for 20 minutes until your first post-operative visit.
- If an ice machine was prescribed, may use continuously until first post-operative visit. Remember to protect the skin to avoid thermal injury (frostbite)
💪Rehabilitation
- Gentle active ankle motion (pointing the foot down and bringing it up to neutral) may begin as directed — avoid stretching the repair past neutral early on.
- Formal physical therapy will be arranged at your first post-operative visit and is essential to recovery.
- Higher-impact activities such as running and jumping are typically not permitted until about 4 months, and return to sport is later, as cleared by your surgeon.
⚠When to Call Us
Contact Dr. Wichman at 414-479-7000 if any of the following are present:
- Painful swelling or numbness
- Unrelenting pain
- Redness around incisions
- Fever (above 101.5°F) - It is not uncommon to have a low-grade fever for the first day or two following surgery.
- Color changes in foot, ankle, or lower extremity
- Continuous drainage or bleeding from incisions (a small amount of drainage is expected.)
- Difficulty breathing
- Excessive nausea or vomiting
If you have an emergency after hours or over the weekend, call 414-479-7000 to be connected to the “on-call” physician or physician assistant. Do NOT call the hospital or surgery center.
If you have an emergency that requires immediate attention, call 911 or proceed to the nearest Emergency Room.