Physical therapy begins

I went to my first physical therapy appointment yesterday. I was a little nervous that my foot would be sore afterwards but it wasn’t. The exercises were pretty simple. I used a few exercise machines designed to help strengthen my ankle and increase my range of motion. My ankle is pretty weak from being in the cast. I was also given a stretchy band and a list of exercises to take home. I’m supposed to do each exercise twice a day, 20 times each.
The home exercises are pretty simple. I put the loop of the band over my injured foot and then pull against the band. I can increase the resistance just by holding the band tighter. It’s a bit challenging; by the time I get to 20 my foot is just about worn out.
The most exciting part was when the therapist told me that I should be back into my normal shoe by December 1st!! Wow, I can’t wait!

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High arch (Pes Cavus) & hammertoes caused by CMT

I've decided to blog my experience with my surgery due to the limited amount of information I found online regarding pes cavus surgery. There seems to be a ton of info about hammertoes and what to expect from surgery but nearly nothing on the high arch surgery due to high arches being rather rare. Severely high arches are generally caused by a neurological disorder, in most cases, as in mine, Charcot-Marie-Tooth (CMT). I hope you find this information helpful.

I was diagnosed with CMT about 15 years ago, although it runs in the family and I've known that I've had it most of my life. It causes muscles to waste away but due to muscles wasting at different rates, you commonly end up with bent toes, fingers, etc. This is how I ended up with hammertoes (clawtoes) and high arches (medical term: pes cavus). Over the years the stronger muscles on the top of the foot continue to pull your foot up and your arch gets higher and higher until it's nearly impossible to get your foot into a shoe. Your toes curl up and under until you are nearly walking on your toenails.

This is the point I find myself at now. I have large red sore spots on the top of each toe where it rubs the shoe. If I wear anything other than crocs or extra-wide tennis shoes my toes will actually bleed because the shoe will literally wear a hole through the skin. Also, my arch is high enough now that it won't fit inside most shoes or slippers. So I went to see a specialist a few weeks ago thinking that he would suggest some sort of orthotic like the doctors I've seen in the past have. The problem with orthotics is that they are expensive, temporary and rarely effective, at least for me. However, this doctor was different, he was an orthopaedic surgeon and an expert in feet. He told me about the surgery that can be done to straighten out my toes and lower my arch while also straightening my heel bone (which I didn't even know was tipped to the side). So, to cut to the chase, this is what he says they will do....they will remove the middle joint in each toe (except for the pinky which is straight) and then pin the toe temporarily. The big toe will have a permanent screw in place. They will break the bones of the arch and realign them to allow a lower arch (which gives a more stable platform to walk/stand on) then reposition the heel bone so that it's straight, which will prevent me from walking on the edge of my foot in the future. Sounds kinda gross and very painful, but if I end up with a more stable foot which will actually fit into normal shoes again, it'll all be worth it.

I'm having surgery on 09/17/09. I'll post as soon as I'm able to get on the computer after surgery. I'll try to keep updating with how I'm feeling and how well the healing process is going as well as follow up postings so that you know whether or not it truly worked. Hopefully this will help you make your decision as to whether or not this surgery is right for you.