Trip to the E.R.

[PaminMaine]

With 5 weeks remaining before our trip ....This morning, my husband was carrying grocery bags to the cellar and slipped at the top of the steps. He was air born until the bottom few steps where he hit his head, and his foot, slid on his tail bone prior to landing in a heap face down on the cement.
A trip to the E.R. results in a slight concussion, spiral fracture of the 5th metatarsal, bruised his bottom and a large contusion on his left forearm and elbow.

Thank god , he didnt break a hip or worse!!!
I thought all of you St John addicts might understand my thought process..
In the 1st minute panic that he was terribly hurt..
In the 2nd minute ---- Phew, he is more or less ok, and then... Oh no !! We can't cancel vacation!

[toni]

OMG, that sounds so frightening! And yes, I totally get the thought process
Speedy recovery to him.

[Nancie-Pa]

With 5 weeks to go, the worst will hopefully be over. And nothing heals better than the warm sand and salty waters of St.John!

[michigan girls]

I totally get that thought process. While working last week, I decided not to navigate a particularly slippery spot in order to get a rear photo of a house I was appraising. My reasoning - If I fall now and break something it won't be healed by the time I leave for STJ!

[Splasher54]

Sounds like a lisfranc injury. I did this in Sept and was just able to start weight bearing in January. 5 broken metatarsals and some cuboid parts plus the lisfranc ligament. Same bruising on bottom of foot (signature result). We just returned from St John last week. Was able to do it on a air cast boot, but look into a knee walker to get around. Saved my sanity and kept me relatively mobile. Where are you staying? Hopefully accessible for crutches etc. I hope your injury won't as serious and you are able to navigate enough to get there and relax!! Good luck!!

[PaminMaine]

Yes, he should be mostly healed and some R&R on the beach will be just what he needs!

Sounds like a lisfranc injury. I did this in Sept and was just able to start weight bearing in January. 5 broken metatarsals and some cuboid parts plus the lisfranc ligament.

Oh my!! Just to clarify , he broke THE 5th metatarsal.. not all 5! Thank god. You must have had a rough few months! ( I edited my post)
Tonight his left side of his foot is turning a nice shade of purple/black, and his arm is very sore to touch.

[Splasher54]

Thanks goodness it was only one!! Wishing him a speedy recovery and have a great trip! I had just made our reservations when I did my foot and I told everyone I didn't care how I did it, but I was going! Luckily by then I was in the air cast. I hiked to Salt pond, Waterlemon and Brown bay in that boot and enjoyed every moment of my trip!!

[snorkeler525]

Sorry to hear of his fall. FWIW, don't take that 5th metatarsal fracture lightly. I broke mine falling on some stairs last August while on vacation. Went to ER there and then an ortho surgeon when I got home. Long story short, it didn't heal (in fact got worse) and the OS was a jerk. I found a great podiatrist who realized I needed surgery. Did that in December and after getting a plate and 5 screws in my 5th metatarsal, I am still on crutches and in a boot while it continues to heal slowly. I see him again in 3 days and we head to Virgin Gorda in 8 days. Just hoping I will finally be off crutches for our trip.

I hope his heals faster - don't let him walk on it any time soon.

Oh, and definitely agree on the knee scooter - so much easier than crutches. Got mine on Amazon.

[PaminMaine]

Wow, snorkeler, it sound like you have had a long journey as well.
Hopefully his will heal quickly, the spiral fracture is on the phalanges and he has no weight bearing restrictions.
Very sore all over this morning, and hobbling around on the foot. The whole baby toe is a pretty shade of purple..

[iheartsj]

If you need a knee scooter while visiting, be sure to reserve one early. I live here and broke my ankle in three places last year. I couldn't get a knee scooter. The only one that the medical equipment place had was reserved for a snow bird that was arriving the next week. I was non weight bearing and hopping around on one foot for two months.

[snorkeler525]

Wow, snorkeler, it sound like you have had a long journey as well.
Hopefully his will heal quickly, the spiral fracture is on the phalanges and he has no weight bearing restrictions.
Very sore all over this morning, and hobbling around on the foot. The whole baby toe is a pretty shade of purple..

I would definitely not be putting any weight on it at this point. These things take a long time to heal and the "nicer" we are to them, the better off we are. If he has not seen a podiatrist, I highly recommend it - they know feet and ankles better than any general OS can. My podiatrist was shocked that my OS didn't operate. By the time I realized that the OS was incompetent and made an appointment with the podiatrist, my bone had shortened and the gap had actually widened so it required much more work than it would have initially.

Good luck and let him enjoy hanging on the beach with a beer or painkiller in his hand!