Christopher Broening

After many years of playing soccer at the club level, I finally succumbed to the numerous ankle ligament injuries acquired over the years. Not only was I unable to play soccer anymore, I was having extreme pain when simply walking. I was no longer able to do anything physical that involved my lower body. No more running, no more skiing, no more cycling, or hiking, etc. Being a very active person, this was very hard for me to accept and led to a significant amount of depression.

I recognized that getting older would slow down my level of activity but, a complete shut down was unacceptable. I had to do something, which is why I sought treatment at HSS. I wanted someone who does only ankles day-in and day-out which is why I was referred to Dr. David Levine. He was very thorough on what to expect from the onset and laid out all the possible options for my treatment. I chose to have my ankle reconstructed with the Brostrom procedure.

The surgery went as expected - very little pain immediately post surgery due to the anesthetic block. In fact there was very little pain during the entire six month recovery period. The worst part about the recovery was the dependence on others for things due to the required immobility. Being not weight bearing for so long really took its toll on me, however it was exactly as was described to me. I guess I'm not the best patient.

It took almost a full 12 months for my ankle to feel 100%. It did, however, feel significantly more stable (more stable than it had been in 20 years) even when I first started putting weight on it after the 10 weeks. It's been 20 months since the surgery now and I'm back doing everything I did previously, even at 52 years old. There is no more swelling, no more concerns with rolling it when I step on something non-level and certainly no more pain. I could not be more pleased with the results.

I would do it again in a minute. I've got my life back again.