The surgery April 4, 2011

After 3 months trying to heal the tendon with no success, the Dr. said I would need surgery.  The surgery (on April 4, 2011) was pretty rough.  I never had any experience with casts or healing bone before, so I really didn't know what to expect.  I got the "All American Procedure" which is much more than just a tendon transfer.  Since the new tendon would just be pulled out again by my flat foot, they had to create an arch there.  First, they do a medial displacement calcaneal osteotomy which is essentially cutting off your heel and moving it about 1/4 to 1/2" to the inside of your foot to redistribute your weight to the outside, and hold it in place with a couple of screws.  Then, they perform a lateral column lengthening where they cut the bone on the side of your foot, retract it to get an opening in the bone, and slide in a piece of bone (some Dr.'s get it from your hip, some from a cadaver) and secure it into place with a screw.  Then they perform an FDL tendon transfer where they tie your old, ripped tendon into a tendon that moves the tip of your toes to your bone and make the side of your foot stable.  Sometimes screws are used to secure the tendons, sometimes just a hole is drilled and the tendons are tied through the bone.  Then, if the surgeon thinks your foot doesn't flex enough, they cut your calf muscle in a procedure called a gastrocnemius recession.  After all that, voila!  You have an arch and strong tendons.  Takes about 1 1/2 to 2 hours.  Day surgery.

I received general anesthesia as well as a nerve block that lasted a couple days after surgery.  I felt really strange while it was "waking up."
The hospital I went to was a new facility.  I heard very good reviews about the care I would receive there and they were correct!  Some nice touches included a piano in the lobby (that you were invited to play to contribute to a healing atmosphere), a status board in the surgery waiting room for your loved ones to see where you are at and these really cool johnny's that hooked to a hose that blew hot air into bladders in the gown making you very warm and comfy.  The staff was really compassionate, too.  Overall, a good experience if you have to get something like this done.  I heard my Dr. had performed over 1,000 of these procedures, so I knew I could benefit from that experience.