r/PeronealTendonitis

10 months ago I started having pain in my ankle where I couldn’t even walk for five minutes. I got an MRI done and it showed that I had tendinosis and flattening of the peroneus brevis tendon in the retromalleolar groove with a small longitudinal split.

The dr told me to try PT and see if that helps. Then we can explore surgery options if it doesn’t get better. I was in a boot for about a month then did some PT. I wasn’t very consistent with it though. My ankle has improved but I still feel pain when walking. The pain sets in pretty fast and I need to take constant breaks when I do walk. The pain is just less intense than it was before. The max number of steps I can do is 5k but I am in pain and need to take breaks.

My ankle feels pretty stable and I don’t have issues with rolling it. I am just not sure if this is enough progress in 10 months and if I should consider surgery. It has improved but is this enough improvement for me to continue doing PT or am I delaying the inevitable of getting surgery?

I started going to the gym last year and normally I never do cardio. Two weeks ago I wanted to try running and apparently you are not supposed to land on your heels but land on the balls of your feet and I didn't know this. I only ran for 3 minutes and stopped after getting mild pain.

Initially it wasn't much and I ignored it and kept walking long distances as I normally do. I started limping a bit but I was thinking it was probably muscle soreness and nothing else. I went out on labour day and walked a significant distance for the entire day, I was also drinking so I really underestimated the pain and the limping situation. The day after, my ankles were really warm to the touch and I couldn't get up on my feet for a while. I know its on me... I was really stupid. I got it on both my feet, thats also the reason that I am limping seriously.

I have been doing RICE with 5 - 10 minute PT every day for 5 days now but I can't tell if its getting better... I'm only doing heel raises, calf stretch, one leg stance, ankle eversion. When I get up and stand on my feet for even 2 minutes I get swelling and tenderness on my ankles. I still have a slight limp that gets worse as I walk or stand and I was wondering if its normal even after a week.

What should I be expecting to see as improvement if I do the conservative treatments properly? I was expecting to feel better earlier because I never injured my tendons before but I understand that tendons heal much slower. Also, should I introduce contrast bath at this stage or later on?

PS. I am currently unable to see a doctor or get an MRI for at least 3 weeks. I do have an ankle brace but I felt that immobilizing wasn't really doing it for me.