Shaun Felcher

The fastest way to relieve heel pain depends on the underlying cause but may include: 1. Rest: Give your heels a break from activities that aggravate the pain. 2. Ice: Apply an ice pack for 15-20 minutes to reduce inflammation. 3. Stretching: Gentle calf and Achilles tendon stretches can help. Also, plantar fascia stretches can be helpful. 4. Supportive footwear: Wear shoes with proper arch support and cushioning. 5. Over-the-counter pain relievers: Non-prescription pain medications like ibuprofen or Alleve may help. 6. Orthotic inserts: Custom or over-the-counter insoles can provide additional support. 7. Physical therapy: Obtain a physical therapy referral for specific exercises and treatments. 8. Heel cushions or pads: These can provide additional comfort and relief. If heel pain persists, I recommend you see a healthcare provider for a proper diagnosis and a personalized treatment plan.

Unfortunately, it is not really possible to rule out a fracture of the wrist without a visit to your doctor. However, the general features of a fracture can include one or more of the following: swelling, pain with pushing on the bones of your wrist, pain with movement, discoloration or bruising, and if severe your wrist can look deformed or abnormal. I wish I could give you a sure fire way to tell but it typically requires an exam and an X-ray to be certain.

In short, yes it can be repaired. With that said, not all rotator cuff tears require surgery. There are many factors that your surgeon will take into account when evaluating you such as age, activity level, comorbidities, if your tear is chronic/degenerative or acute from trauma, have you completed any physical therapy, etc. Once it’s determined that you are a good candidate for surgery and you decide you want to proceed, then the repair can be done. Typically surgery is considered for tears >50%.

Having pain after meniscus surgery is common. If you just recently had surgery, less than 3-6 months ago, having some pain from the surgery, stiffness, or weakness that develops is common. Beyond 6 months pain can persist if your physical therapy wasn’t adequate or if you have other underlying knee conditions. The most common issue to have persistent pain after meniscus surgery is having underlying arthritis (cartilage wear and tear). In this circumstance, if the cartilage loss is in the same area of your meniscus surgery, your pain can actually become worse after surgery due to losing some of the extra “cushion” the meniscus provides.

Not all broken bones (also called fractures) require a cast. There are a number of factors that are taken into account by your provider to include which bone is involved, where it’s located on that bone (such as in the middle or by the joint), if it is still lined up or if it needs to be reduced or “set” back into place, if the break pushed through the skin and is open to the air, how long ago you broke the bone, how active you are, and your age.

Many types of finger and toe fractures do not need much of any treatment and other types require immediate surgery. So I would ensure you have a thorough evaluation by a knowledgable medical provider, such as an Orthopedic Surgeon, or some other provider trained in musculoskeletal care.

There are a number of factors that go into the decision of whether a meniscus is repairable or not. My best recommendation would be to make an appointment with an Orthopedic Surgeon to have them review your imaging and perform an exam. With that said, typically in younger, active patients the leaning is to repair a meniscus if it is possible. There are certain tear patterns that are not repairable and require debridement or partial removal (a “clean up” type of surgery). It is also possible to treat a torn meniscus nonoperatively in certain circumstances, this is especially true when there are no mechanical symptoms such as locking or buckling of the knee or in the setting of significant arthritis.

I hope that’s helpful.

The short answer is maybe. Depending on which ligament has been injured and your age/activity level, certain ligaments can be treated without surgery (brace and physical therapy) and others require reconstructive surgery or repair. I would recommend a referral to an orthopedic surgeon for evaluation. Generally, an anterior cruciate ligament or lateral collateral ligament require surgery and a medical collateral ligament or a posterior cruciate ligament do not. However, that doesn’t necessarily hold true for everyone (such as high level athletes), and when more than one ligament is torn, that also can change what needs to have surgery.
I hope you find that helpful. You can also find more information on the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons website, Orthoinfo.org.

I’m assuming you’re referring to a sprained ankle. In that case a single sprain is by its definition not serious as it means you did not break a bone and sustained a soft tissue injury to the supporting ligaments if the ankle. It can become serious if it also involves a broken bone or something called a syndesmosis injury (also referred to as a high sprain). Another concern can be if you’ve had frequent sprains and the ligaments are now stretched out too much, you can have an unstable ankle (rolls easy), especially when on uneven ground; this situation at times can require surgery, depending on the severity, to tighten the ligament up again and/or reconstruct the ligament.

Hope that helps.

It can vary depending on the severity of the sprain and if it involved any bony injury known as an avulsion fracture. Typically, however, most sprains can be treated and rehabbed within 6-8 weeks with more severe sprains taking up to 12 weeks before you’re back doing activities without restrictions.

Good news and bad news. Good news is given enough time in most people this condition will resolve without any invasive interventions or surgery, however, the bad news is it can take 1-2 years for some people for this to resolve. The initial treatment would be to take some time off and let it rest, utilize an NSAID if able (such as Ibuprofen or Naproxen), and possibly use a counterforce strap (tennis elbow strap) to help with the discomfort when doing things that might aggravate it. If the pain starts to become limiting, visiting the Orthopedic Surgeon or a primary care sports medicine doctor can be helpful in order to confirm the diagnosis and possibly obtain an injection. Just know, that frequently despite our attempts at treating this condition, often times it comes down to the passage of time for it to resolve.

It depends on the location of the osteonecrosis. If it is in a location such as the hip joint then a hip replacement may be the solution, however, it is different if it is involving a bone in the hand, such as something called Kienbock’s disease, or some other area of the body. If a surgery is not wanted or needed for the osteonecrosis there are some medical interventions that can sometimes help with the pain and can be discussed with your Orthopedic Surgeon or primary care provider.

There are several factors that go into the healing of an ankle fracture. The most common are the quality of the bone (severe osteoporosis can make the bone weaker and require a longer period of protection), presence of diabetes (almost always slows the overall healing process), and the severity of the fracture. The general overall healing time for an ankle fracture is approximately 12 weeks with patients beginning to put weight on the ankle at different times during those 3 months based on those previous factors. So, it would be fair to expect approximately 3 months to start to return to a more normal life, but that’s a general target with some people being slightly earlier and others being slightly longer.

I hope that answers your question.

Shaun Felcher MD

Fractures heal at different rates depending on the location in the body, any other medical issues such as diabetes, and at times the age of the patient. However, typically, a fracture can be considered healed around 12 weeks if it heals in a normal manner without issues, so it is reasonable to consider the fracture not healed at 6 weeks for your mother.

Many people will start to feel better at 6 weeks because the bones are getting "sticky" from a callus that is formed during the healing process, but this needs to calcify before it can become new bone.

I hope that is helpful,

Shaun Felcher, MD