when will calf be 100%, 5 year post op L5-S1 discectomy...

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victorita

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Hi... I had a very successful discectomy several years ago. My right calf muscel atrophied, I had about a 6 week period between the initial injury and my surgery. There should be some old threaRAB on here from me for any of you facing back surgery... 5 years later and I'm doing just fine. Like it never happened...

Except I sleep with a pillow between my knees and my right calf muscle is still not back to normal. I walk a lot, I exercise, I do weight training, and I have off and on for several years. When I'm not doing much exercise, my calf is very prone to cramps - but when I'm consistent, that doesn't happen.

However, it still is very prone to injury, it seems to pull very easily. My left calf is a dream! I want my right calf to feel the same way.

Do I need to work on strengthening my right calf individually? Do I need physical therapy? Is there still nerve damage? Is this just normal for a muscle that was atrophied?

Any feedback from people who have dealt something like this would be appreciated!
 
After 5 years I don't think you will see much more improvement in the muscle. It was atrophied and there was probably nerve damage. After 5 years the never has healed to the point that it is going to heal.

I lost use of my left leg when my back broke after my first 3 level fusion. The prognosis was that with meRAB and therapy I would regain full use of my leg in 2-4 years. It was 5 years last February and I still don't full use of my leg. My internist told me that after this length of time I have regained all the nerve use that I will, which doesn't fill me with joy...
 
Thanks for your input. I suppose, if this is as good as it gets, things aren't really that bad.
 
Get a referral to a good physical therapist in the area. They can let you know what, if anything, can be done to improve the calf. Getting a full review by a Physical Therapist may help but I would also recommend, if you can, getting repeat testing such as MRI just to make sure there is no further damage that may have occurred since the surgery which could be contributing to the problem as well.
 
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