Smooth Sailing for Nancy after Ankle Replacement Surgery

Nancy Kispert, 74, is a happy retiree with a loving husband, three grown children and eight grandchildren. Nancy and her husband, Donald, with whom she recently celebrated her 56th wedding anniversary, are active members of their church and Ducks Unlimited, a wetlands conservation group. They also enjoy spending summers in Minnesota and cruises to the Caribbean. “As far as I’m concerned, I’m like any normal person my age,” Nancy says.

This wasn’t always the case for Nancy. In 1995, she fell on snow-covered ice, breaking her ankle in three separate places. Nancy underwent surgery to repair the ankle – only to have it broken again in a stroke of bad luck when her cast was removed two weeks later. Two years later, Nancy again underwent surgery, this time to repair the damage from the first surgery. “These repairs were successful, and gave me pain relief for several years,” Nancy says.

Unfortunately, the pain relief didn’t last, and Nancy soon found her mobility severely limited. “I was able to walk, but every step hurt,” Nancy says. “It got to the point where my husband wouldn’t even ask me to join him on any shopping trips or outings because he knew I wouldn’t be able to walk due to the pain.”

At first, Nancy says she tried to cope with the pain with ankle injections administered by her doctor. The injections provided limited relief for a short period of time, but the pain always came back. “Eventually, I felt like I was more or less in complete disability,” Nancy says. “I even had to have a handicapped sticker on my car because I simply couldn’t walk distances.”

Feeling like she had no other options, Nancy began to think about surgery once again to help her cope with the pain and resume a normal life. “A friend of mine underwent ankle replacement surgery with the Agility™ Total Ankle System from DePuy Orthopaedics and achieved excellent results, so she encouraged me to consider looking into it,” Nancy says. Fortunately, Nancy’s orthopaedic surgeon confirmed that she was a good candidate for the surgery.

Nancy moved forward with ankle replacement surgery in November 2005. Within a week of the surgery, she says her pain had subsided. “My leg could be moved normally, and I didn’t need any post-operative pain medicine following the first week,” Nancy says.

Following her surgery, Nancy underwent five weeks of water therapy and pool walking, followed by physical therapy for another four weeks. “Within four weeks, I had fantastic range of motion,” Nancy says. “My physical therapists were amazed at my progress!”

Through it all, Nancy says her husband Donald was a tremendous help to her. “Following the surgery, he carted me around in the wheelchair, helped me with therapy and even waited for me to come out of the water after my pool therapy. He is a kind, wonderful man,” Nancy says.

Looking back, Nancy says she if she had known how successful her surgery would be, she would have chosen to have her ankle replaced much sooner. “It’s amazing. I really feel like my doctor gave me my life back,” Nancy says. “If someone was suffering and in the same amount of pain I was in before, I would definitely tell them to ask their doctor about the surgery.”

The performance of ankle replacements depends on age, weight, activity level, and other factors. There are potential risks and recovery takes time. People with conditions limiting rehabilitation should not have this surgery. Only an orthopaedic surgeon can tell if ankle replacement is right for you.

Last Updated: 10/16/2007