hi
I have just had my tibial rod removed after having it in since april 2004. It was always my intention to have it removed for several reasons...
1. I've had doctors tell me that the rod does cause higher levels of heavy metals in the blood.
2. I've had doctors tell me that it is a good to have it out to help avoid problems in later life.
now that it's out it actually does feel better...lighter even (unless thats just in my head)

i have no education in medicine or orthopaedics but my experience tells me that after such an injury, pain will exist for years to come.

In my situation there were several fractures of the tibia (compound), and a clean break of the fib following a car accident. I had a rod and some screws put in, with the top screws taken out a year after accident. a year and a half later I had the metal out while they rebroke my tib and fixed up the angle of my bones. Steel back in. A year later they took it all out. hopefully this marks the end of it.

hope this helps. ask me any questions you want.

I appreciate your reply. There's a major shortage of information on this on the web. Only about 10-20% of people that get the IM rod have it removed.
But after talking to quite a few people about their nail removals. I've decided to do it, the consensus is that it does give major pain relief and after 15 months of living with the constant throbbing in my leg. That's all I really want.
I made the mistake of watching a video of the surgery on Youtube, OMG its so violent!!

Thanks again for replying

I just had my rod removed yesterday. I am so nervous. What should i expect in terms of recovery time.

Does it hurt to walk? Help

I've been thinking of getting the rod removed from my leg, I just want to thank everyone for sharing and all. Your past experiences have really helped me out in my decision. Thanks.

hi everyone,my name is Naresh. want to share my experience with you guys. I met with an road traffic accident on aug 21 2008 broke my right tibia&fibula(exactly in the midle).doctors mentioned it Compound grade 1 fracture.They inserted a Rod and 4 Nails, still I am on bed rest. Doctors removed the upper 2 nails on march 19 2009, and asked me to take bed rest for 15 days more. Could you guys please tell me when can I expect walking ? atleast with a stick(crutch). many thanks for any responses...

I had it all removed last tuesday. They told me to stay off my feet for a couple of days. I have been walking without my cruthes the past few days. my knee area hurts butit's part of the heeling process. When I had the upper 2 screws removed, it took a good 2 weeks to start getting around with the ctrutches. Keep me posted.

I had a tib/fib spiral fracture skiing last January. I had an IM rod and 2 screws (one by the ankle, one below the knee) put in. An avid skier and soccer player, I was disappointed to find that I could not run without pain through my Tibia and could not ski properly. I was told getting the rod out was my best bet by my orthopedic surgeon, and went in for this procedure on friday. I was told that i would be on crutches for 2 -4 weeks, but could come off the minute I felt ok. To my surprise, I was off crutches 3 hours post-op! Though i have been staying off my feet and keeping my leg elevated, I haven't need crutches at all and my leg is feeling better by the day. I am 4 days post op and can almost walk completely normally. My leg feels less stiff already, though admittedly, with pain through the knee (the surgery requires the doctors to shave a bit off the patella, which gets sore for the first week or so post-op). All in all it is not even a fraction as bad as the process of having the nail put in, and if you are having any discomfort at all I would highly recommend it. Good luck! - Steph

After having them in for 15 months, I had my Tibial Nail & 3 screws removed about 3 weeks ago. I was walking without a crutch within 2 days, however I have experienced a fair amount of discomfort in my knee. I realize that it has only been a short time since surgery, but I am anxious about losing flexibility as it is difficult to bend my knee completely. I am a 23 yr old male...can't imagine having these kind of limitations permanently. Would those of you who have had this surgery recommend PT? Or am I just being impatiently paranoid?

I had an M/C accident in Dec 2004 which required major surgery. I had a TB3 break (compound, shattered tib & fib and loss of skin and muscle) apart from breaking all toes and the keystone of the foot. I had an IM rod installed in Jan 2005, Muscle flap and skin graft in Jan 2005, a bone graft in April 2005, and after a non-union and an infection the IM rod was removed and I had a Taylor Spatial frame fitted in Feb 2006. The relief from having the IM rod was measurable during the week between the rod removal and the fitting of the Frame (which is another story in itself). The TSF was removed in August 2006 with my left tibia about 32 mm shorter than the right. In March 2008 I developed a Syndenosis on the fib/tib, and elected to this treated because of the pain, and have an ISKD and osteotomy on the tib/fib to establish correct leg length. The fitting of the ISKD was painful in the knee, but 3 days postop all good. After 18 months I started developing severe pain in my ankle and lower leg, and have just had the lower ISKD locking screws removed to dynamise the new bone growth, another two screws removed that remained from Jan 2005 surgery, and an ankle athroscopy to see if there was anything that may be triggering the pain. So far after 4 days there is still pain in the lower leg but less. Also because the tibia is now fully loaded it hurts after a while of walking, (I walked out of the hospital, however went onto crutches for 2-3 days to get used to the tibia taking a load). The ankle pain is about 50% of what is was. I will be getting the ISKD and the remaining hardware removed in about 6 months when the tib has consolidated fully. After 17 operations over almost 5 years I reckon I may be as good as I am going to be. So in a roundabout way, I would recommend getting all the hardware out of your leg when you can. There is no doubt that every time I had hardware removed their was a significant difference in pain levels. Good Luck with everything