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mathew`
Sport climber
topanga, ca
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Topic Author's Original Post - Sep 23, 2008 - 08:37pm PT
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So I broke my elbow in a fall and got a radial head implant. Total bummer - the end of the radius is a cobalt socket thing.
That was six months ago - I've been healing really good, not much pain and got all my flexibility back, but I still can't see how it will respond to pulling on small holds - at the moment its just not possible.
Has anyone else out there had this op? Are you cranking again?
thanks - Mathew
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neebee
Social climber
calif/texas
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Sep 23, 2008 - 09:58pm PT
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hey there matthew... say, best wishes on your getting well again, and back into shape...
hopefully someone will jump in there soon...
god bless to you, as you get ready to get back out there and get back up there...
edit---hopefully this will get the ol' posting-ball a rollin' for you...
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mathew`
Sport climber
topanga, ca
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Topic Author's Reply - Sep 23, 2008 - 10:36pm PT
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thanks!
you know I'd have thought what with people falling off stuff all the time and landing with their arms out quite a few climbers would have had this break and this same operation. The physio I go to has a clinic full of 'em. Seems a good chunk of the population do nothing but fall on their elbows. In 25 yrs of cragging I've never met a climber who did this.
the only thing that is freaking me out is that climbers who do this don't end up climbing anymore and so aren't on the forums :)
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Dirka
Trad climber
SF
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Sep 24, 2008 - 01:11am PT
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Glad you are mending.
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HighDesertDJ
Trad climber
Arid-zona
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Sep 24, 2008 - 01:12am PT
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Take it really easy man. It might take years before you can pull really hard. Stick to the moderates and be happy that you can climb at all....as you get stronger it will likely return. Much luck.
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Willoughby
Social climber
Truckee, CA
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Sep 24, 2008 - 01:54am PT
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"the only thing that is freaking me out is that climbers who do this ... aren't on the forums"
Maybe they're actually out climbing...
No insight on that injury, but I hope you continue to heal 'til you're back up to speed.
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Lasti
Trad climber
Budapest
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Sep 24, 2008 - 02:19am PT
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Hey Mathew,
I dislocated my elbow a few years back. No cobalt thingy, no operation, just hugely elongated and shortend and torn and downright ugly ligaments, muscles 'n stuff. If the implant can take the beating, you will, just take it easy. I know the elbow I injured was more prone to fatigue and repetitive strain injuries for a long time (think maybe two years or more) after the initial 4-5 months of rehabilitation. Best guess is ask your doctor or physio about the implant... And take it easy, stick to the moderates for a while and strengthen that baby.
Have a nice healing!
Lasti
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mathew`
Sport climber
topanga, ca
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Topic Author's Reply - Sep 24, 2008 - 04:02am PT
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Thanks for all the kind words.
To be honest, its a great excuse to get back on moderates and do the sort of climbing that got me all psyched when I was 17. Minus maybe the whole sleeping in the dirt thing. Come to that minus the whole hitch-hiking and eating pot noodle thing too.
Bump the post up one more time - just in case anyone with a radial head replacement sees this - I got a ton of advice on how to get it flexible again.
Mathew
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neebee
Social climber
calif/texas
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Sep 24, 2008 - 04:16am PT
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hey there matthew... say, there you go.. a few more folks showed up...
say, i HAVE heard that alots of adults that had never roller bladed (the so called modern way of roller skating) have (in that group of folks) broken MANY an elbow...
have not heard how they fared later, but they were not climbers...
well, say... if things don't work out as well as you expected, i have recently read about a climber that could not use his one side, and he was climbing any way he could...
course, in your case, you only need to take care---but the temptation may always be to over strain it---so just keep WISDOM first and formost, over pleasure:
hmmm.... seems like something our folks tried to teach us when we were kids... (seems like it nipped a lot of fun, in the buds, too---but, we did well to thus: play-again-another-day)....
sure hope some "successful examples" show up or come your way, while your on the mending-trail...
once again, god bless... look at them ol' rocks and smile-a-good-one... at least they are all still out there waiting for you, and you just might be surprised with some better fortunes than you expected... one nevers knows...
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rhyang
climber
SJC
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Mar 27, 2009 - 02:40pm PT
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How are you doing Matthew ?
I managed to take a spill on (off) my bike last week. Low speed, flubbed the clip, hit the pavement on my left arm, just pedaling to the trailhead. I kept riding for a bit, then decided it was hurting too much to continue. I figured it was just a bruise ..
After a week I caved in and went to see an ortho / sports doc. X-ray showed a non-displaced fracture of the radial head. He said usually they don't even cast or splint these .. just let them heal for 6 weeks. Cycling is out for a while as is climbing. Guess I'm gonna be doing a lot of hiking though :)
He said most people get a good recovery after this sort of thing, but potentially with a little less range of motion. Any other experiences ?
f**k I have been getting lots of radiation the last couple of years ..
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klk
Trad climber
cali
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Mar 27, 2009 - 02:45pm PT
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matthew-- dont know anyone who had a radial head replacement. but i can't think of any mechanical reason why that alone would prevent you from climbing. i can imagine certain types of crack climbing getting a lot more difficult, but that wouldn't end the sport.
about 20 years ago i climbed at jtree with a visiting german, flipper, former famous alpinist, who'd destroyed his elbow in a horrific rockfall accident. they'd had to fuse his elbow-- the arm was permanently locked at about 10 or 15 degrees past vertical. he still climbed remarkably well, even on surprisingly steep stuff.
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steelmnkey
climber
Vision man...ya gotta have vision...
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Mar 27, 2009 - 03:00pm PT
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I executed a 20mph forward flip on my mountain bike back in '98 and (stupid me) put out my arm in an attempt to save the ol' brain bucket (I had a helmet on it). I ended up jamming the forearm bone into the upper arm bone (ulnar into the humerus?)and cracking the cup on the end of the humerus(?). Sounds like you did something similar, but much worse.
I didn't have to have any surgery, but it healed fine and I don't have any problems climbing, other than being generally weak and fat. Not sure if that would have any bearing on your situation, due to the differing magnitudes involved, but figured I'd share anyway. :-)
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Colt
climber
Midpines
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Mar 27, 2009 - 03:04pm PT
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mathew`,
I have had this injury and have had a 99.999% recovery. I didn't have the implant, but I did have 7 screws in a plate added to repair the radial head on my right arm. I had the surgery in late winter/spring of 2001. I had a follow surgery in late summer 2001 to remove the hardware and so the doctor could sculpt the bone a bit. This helped with the crepitus (sp?) which is the creaking sound in the joint. I was back to 85-90 % strength with in a few months of the second surgery. You'll likely find small holds are not the issue. Hard pulling on jugs puts more stain on the elbow generally. Anyway, I was 100% back in shape after about a year. The mobility was the biggest issue. Even at 1 year I could not full extend my arm...which lead to soreness after long days or hard bouldering. But, the mobility improved slowly..and kept improving for several years. Now, no more sore elbow when storms come in, full extension range, and only a slight supination issue. The recovery is so good by now that I never think about it...I acutally had to glance down and check which arm had the scar before writing down right or left...hah!
I'd be glad to try to answer any other questions you may have.
Also, sorry for the blocky post...in a bit of a hurry at work.
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ron gomez
Trad climber
fallbrook,ca
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Mar 27, 2009 - 03:30pm PT
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Wow, didn't even know they were doing this replacement. Haven't treated anyone with this condition but......keep in mind 1).can still be a bit early in the rehab to press the lateral elbow with isolated stress like this, although with small holds it makes sense that the medial elbow will stress more. Maybe watch your wrist position with small holds and try not to extened(bend back)the wrist too much. 2). If the muscle attachment has been rearranged(anchored somewhere else)it could effect the pull AND contraction properties of the muscles involved. Good luck with it, maybe you just need more time and make dang sure yer muscles have had time to develop back to normal, strength wise.
Peace
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Lynne Leichtfuss
Social climber
valley center, ca
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Mar 27, 2009 - 03:39pm PT
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Sorry Matt, I'll remember you in my good thoughts and prayers for a speedy recovery. lrl
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rhyang
climber
SJC
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Mar 27, 2009 - 03:53pm PT
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Someone advised me to get full-body bubble wrap :)
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rhyang
climber
SJC
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Mar 27, 2009 - 04:33pm PT
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Fat guy -- thanks for the suggestion .. how's that idea working out for you ? :)
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Big Breasted Woman
Trad climber
The Brown Crack
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Mar 27, 2009 - 07:13pm PT
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Hi Matthew! I dislocated and shattered my left elbow quite a few years ago. Wish I'd had a few more options as far as treatment is concerned. I ended up having my radial head removed. The first question I asked after surgery was, "When will I be able to climb again?" The surgeon looked at me with disbelief and said I had done the worst possible injury to my elbow and that I'd be lucky if I climbed again at all. To say the least, he obviously didn't know me well. I spent about 3-4 months struggling in PT and at one point actually got my arm totally straight. It never happened again though and I was left with about 50% total range of motion. Not to be deterred, I started slowly training again. It's amazing what the human body can do to adapt. I was always good with my feet but losing all that range of motion with my arm just made me use my feet even more. I know I climb steep slab even better now than I did before my accident. It's kind of a bummer leading with it though. My elbow tires more easily and if I hang on it too long, while placing gear, it forces it to straighten and that tweaks it a bit. Nonetheless, I'm just freakin' happy to be able to climb at all. Take your recuperation and progress slow so your tendons have sufficient time to regain their former strength. I'm able to hold onto very small stuff without any problem at all. Good luck to you and take it slow!! You'll be fine!
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neebee
Social climber
calif/texas
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Mar 27, 2009 - 07:21pm PT
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hey there, rhang.. say, were you the one to first bump this?
say, i was wondering how matthew is doing too...
say, there is some good shares here, too...
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Jaybro
Social climber
wuz real!
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Mar 27, 2009 - 10:15pm PT
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Good luck Matthew' I predict full recovery, takes a while though.
Rhyang, how many times can one pull the same Dragon's tail? Glad you're on the mend.
Lois, damn sis, horrendous! How come you never mentioned this before? I know, I prolly wasn't listening. BTW, I hadda order more books, one will be headed your way once I have my hands on it!
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