Torn achilles tendon

My brother has just completely torn his achilles tendon playing badminton of all things. Not just partially, but completely snapped. The docs have said that they are not going to try and reattatch it as the recovery rate doesn't improve much by doing this. They have put a pot on his leg from the thigh to his toes, holding his toes in a pointed position. Over the next few months they will remove and redo the pot and unpoint his toes at each subsequent cast, stretching his hopefully self-reattached tendon. This all seems a bit counter intuative. Do tendons reattatch themselves? Has anyone else out there experienced this? He could do with some positive news.

Thanks in advance

Harry

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Harry H Howgill

My brother has just completely torn his achilles tendon playing badminton of all things. Not just partially, but completely snapped. The docs have said that they are not going to try and reattatch it as the recovery rate doesn't improve much by doing this. They have put a pot on his leg from the thigh to his toes, holding his toes in a pointed position. Over the next few months they will remove and redo the pot and unpoint his toes at each subsequent cast, stretching his hopefully self-reattached tendon. This all seems a bit counter intuative. Do tendons reattatch themselves? Has anyone else out there experienced this? He could do with some positive news.

Thanks in advance

Harry

---

this is pretty standard proceedure, tendons don't reattach themselves but scar tissue will will fill whatever tear is there, plenty of physio on the foot, ankle and leg after the pot is off and no reason why he wont be back in sport, the biggest problem i see with people who have had this is a fear of using it once its better, hence the leg just gets weaker and weaker.

This happened to me and wasn't operated on. Off work ten weeks and told not to undertake any impact sports.

Started running afterwards having never run before! Haven't played badminton though which is how I did it.

Do find that I don't have much spring in the injured leg and that my calf muscle is still smaller (and that is after 10 years).

Badminton does sem like a common way of doing this. You're not the first to say that. I never realised it was so dangerous. I think I'll stick to safe things like Coniston Gullies!

I had a partly torn and stiff and painful Achille for years. This was probably due to much running, not enough stretching/strenghtening, and a varus forefoot. Had an operation almost half a year ago now, the surgeon was a top runner. Now the tendon is still very painful (better than at any time since the operation, but worse than before it). The muscle feels perfect but still a bit smaller than the other one.