Wishing Mitch Well

[Lester Burnham]

I am recovering from a broken leg in January so I can share some insights. It's devastating injury especially for a professional sportsman but I think Mitch has a few things going for him. It appears from the photo that he has a full cast rather than internal fixation via a metal rod through the tibia. This suggests the tibia had a fairly clean break. The bone should heal relatively quickly and he won't have the complications from the insertion at the knee and the screws at each end of the tibia. It seems counter-intuitive but it's actually a good thing that the fibula broke as well. It's not naturally a weight supporting bone so when it's intact it can hold up the meshing of the tibia. The other thing in his favour was that the bones didn't puncture the skin. There will be less risk of infection and less swelling of the tissues.

My best guess would be in plaster/on crutches for 2 to 3 months, moonboot for another couple of months, start running after 8 to 9 months, back playing after 12 months. I wish him well.