Is this normal?

by Jeanette
(Ft. Walton Beach, FL, USA)

I had surgery exactly 2 weeks ago for Morton's Neuroma. I actually had two neuromas on the left foot removed. One was between the 2nd and 3rd toe, and the other was between the 3rd and 4th toe. I went for a check up 3 days ago and was told to start walking on it, wearing good shoes or good sneakers. Impossible! I had to borrow crutches from a friend and am not able to put any pressure on the ball of my foot at all. I still have a lot of swelling. The incisions were made in the top of the foot. The bottom of the foot, specifically the ball of the foot, is very... well, the only way I can think of to describe it, is soft, almost as if it is filled with liquid.. gushy, as if it were a giant blister. In addition, the bottom of my foot is extremely dry and my heel itches because it is so dry. My toes are still swollen, and if I am sitting and put my feet flat on the ground, my toes do not touch the ground..they are raised up about a quarter of an inch. I still have my stitches in and they are due to be taken out in 4 days. Often too, my foot feels extremely hot / burning... it actually feels good to put a cool sheet under it to cool it off. I was told by my doctor at my last appt that I could get the foot wet now, just to be sure to use neosporin and cover with band aides after. He said I could continue to ice the ankle if I wanted to, but I am not allowed to ice any other part of the foot still. (I never have been allowed to ice anything but the ankle). Does my recovery sound normal with the problems and pain I have been experiencing? I am a little concerned as my doctor told me I could walk on it, wear shoes, etc.. yet I am not able to and actually have borrowed a friend's crutches since the pain and swelling is so bad. The two areas where my stitches are do not seem to be infected at all - - I have been cleaning , using hydrogen peroxide, followed up by neosporin, and covering with gauze and band aids. Also, it feels very good when I wash the foot with warm water.. it makes me want to soak it in really warm or hot water with maybe some epson salt... since I still have stitches, swelling, etc. I have refrained from soaking in a warm foot bath since I don't know if I should. Also, it looks like there is an unusual large gap now between my 2nd and 3rd toe...not sure if when the stitches are out and this heals if the gap will go away. I have been keeping it elevated since this gives me some relief...when the blood rushes back to it..it hurts again, so I have not been able to keep it down for any extended period of time.. I would like to hear your opinion on all these things that I have been experiencing during my recovery..whether they sound normal, or if they sound abnormal / what the problem may be so I can discuss with my doctor at my next visit when I get my stitches out, or if my recovery sounds normal given that I had two neuromas removed. From everything that I have read on the internet I am getting scared that my recovery seems to be taking longer...and I'm not really sure as to what timeframe I can expect or is normal to start feeling better where I'm able to wear shoes and just walk again. I guess I'm just a bit scared that this isn't going well as I got the impression from my doctor at my last visit that I should be walking normal and wearing shoes, yet I am unable to put pressure on it or keep it not elevated for long even..

Thank you.

Hi Jeanette,
Unfortunately I have been on vacation for the last eight days and so this response probably comes a little late. By this time you should have had your stitches removed and "hopefully" are doing better.
Keep in mind that every one recovers at a different rate and their recovery story can be different.
The only thing that concerned me in your post op description was the swelling on the bottom of the foot; it almost sounds as if you had a hematoma which is an accumulation of blood from excessive bleeding inside the wound. The problem with this is it can lead to an infection and has to be drained. (if this was the case then I would have assumed your doctor would have drained it by now).
This would have also explained why your toes were off the ground when you stood up.
Hopefully, by this point in time you are doing much better and I would be curious to hear from you regarding your progress.
Marc Mitnick DPM