Bone infections

@burrkay An infection in a bone is a serious matter, and needs to be addressed by a medical professional. There are no medical professionals on Connect, and a doctor needs to evaluate your condition in order to advise treatment. I have a friend who had an infection related to hardware from an ankle fracture. She had several surgical procedures ( 7 or 8 ) to remove diseased tissue and had a wound vac attached pulling out the fluid. She was in a rehab nursing home and came close to needing an amputation. This is a serious condition and should be discussed with your surgeon for your knee replacement as soon as possible. Have you sought medical attention for this infectious condition? Would you please follow up and update me about your progress in healing?

Thank you Jennifer-
Yes I’m being treated at the Baptist Hospital- Wound Center here in Arkansas with a weekly follow up, antibiotics, and next week an X-ray…I’ll be calling my ortho surgeon Monday for an appointment…my daughter in law’s cousin (a MD) also says it’s serious and deserves immediate attention!
The process so far has been way too slow…concerning to me…since May this year!
Take care!

Jennifer-
Please understand, the wound is on the ankle bone, and although it had not fully healed the doctor at the wound center gave me the option in August of continuing my weekly follow ups or watching it on my own for awhile with the understanding that if it bothered me much longer I’d come back in to have it checked. I opted for the latter…I re-injured it in September and have been treating it at home with topical antibiotics. It just refused to totally heal, so I re-upped with him this week, and he seemed quite concerned, prescribing a heavy dose of antibiotics capsules, and instructions for keeping it clean and treating it with a new dressing each day.
I understand it’s serious and don’t intend to ignore it.
Thank you for what you do for Mayo Connect.
I’ve been a caregiver for my wife, s lung cancer patient for nearly 7 years now, and a staunch advocate of Connect and Mayo for that matter…
Enjoy your Thanksgiving holiday!
Bill

My husband had a bone infection in his foot last summer. It went undiagnosed for weeks. When he was finally admitted to the hospital he needed emergency surgery and 6 weeks of IV antibiotics. His was diagnosed by MRI. He was ultimately referred to an infectious disease doctor who oversaw his care. I would recommend a consult with an infectious disease doctor since a bone infection is very serious.-

Thank you legolandfan-hope your husband is doing well now.
Last Wednesday I saw a man in the waiting room with a pump connected to his lower leg…obviously having had a surgery…not something to ignore for sure!
Bill

@burrkay Bill, I'm relieved to hear that you are addressing the infection. Bless you for being a caregiver to your wife. That is hard work but it's what we do for love. It's important not to neglect your own health while you are focused on your loved one.

I do know lower extremities take longer to heal than other parts of the body. I had a serious compound ankle fracture in 2020 with a bone broken through the skin, and infection was a concern for my doctors because it was a horse back accident and I had been around horses. The day before, I had seen a doctor because I found a tick on me, so at the time I was injured, I was already on antibiotics which was probably a good thing, and I did not develop an infection. I am a spine surgery patient too (cervical fusion). Both of those surgeries were at Mayo, except the initial surgery to debride the wound and place an external fixation cage on the ankle fracture because I was on a trip when it happened. Does your neuropathy mask the pain of your ankle infection?

Thank you for your holiday greetings and I also share your enthusiasm for Connect. I am here because of my experience of being a Mayo surgical patient and my excellent care. My path to spine surgery took a few years and doctors kept missing the real problem before I came to Mayo because spine problems are tricky. During those years, I was a caregiver to my disabled parents while my dad was at end stage heart disease.

I'm glad you asked the question about bone infection because it is important for others to understand the seriousness of that type of condition. What injury did you have in addition to the infection?

Thanks Jennifer…sorry to hear about your mishap with the horses. Sounds like a ruff ordeal.
My wife’s lung cancer bilobectony was done at Mayo Rochester and was followed in Jacksonville for a few years and lately in Rochester since we have now relocated to Arkansas to be closer to family. So we are familiar with Mayo and are pleased with the care.
As for my current issue, I am dealing with it locally with my regular care provider and the wound center thus far. However I have initiated an appointment request with my ortho via their portal and will follow up with a call Monday AM for a consult.
The other re-injury of the ankle was only when in September I bumped it pretty hard while getting into our hot tub.
It had healed very nicely and the wound center doc had cleared me for pool and spa activity in late August.
I’m concerned enough to have re-upped with a visit last week to see the wound center doctor. He is concerned about it and intends to x-ray it on Thursday when I return for follow up.
In the meantime I will be talking with my ortho. The timeline for all this is concerning to me of course…infections don’t seem to wait for doctors schedules- hah!
Take care…