Hardware removal surgery

On Thursday October 11, I had the first of two hardware removal surgeries, this one to remove the tibia plate and its 14 screws. This hardware had been in my leg since April 8, 2006 (see here). I was on crutches until yesterday, and although my leg is still a bit swollen, bruised, and sore at the incision sites, today I can walk without any pain in the bone. I am thrilled to no end - prior to this, every single step I took hurt, causing me to limp. Now I can walk without any limp at all.

Here are a couple of pics of what was removed:

I had the stitches removed Wednesday, October 24, and talked to the surgeon about the fibula plate removal. I had hoped that this could be done next month. Unfortunately, the doctor wants to wait a few months before doing that, so I have to live with those stupid screws on the outside of my ankle until probably February. Being right on the ankle bone and right under the skin, they really do cause a lot of irritation, especially if I try to wear hiking boots or my motorcycle riding boots. I have to get creative with padding to make it possible to ride over long distances. Here's an X-ray of my leg with the tibia plate out. You can see all the little holes in the bone where the screws were.