Experiences of healing from an ORIF for wrist fracture?

[Vinculum]

I broke my wrist just over 3 months ago - a Colles fracture of the radius. It was surgically fixed with a titanium plate and screws and the surgeon was very upbeat about recovery and assured me the plate would stay in with (most likely) no problems.

I'm doing lots of physio and mobility's improving - far from back to normal though and the wrist is still stiff. My hand stiffens up, especially overnight, albeit not as badly as it did. I definitely have made big progress - but the part of my wrist where I know the plate is attached is often very sore, and when I stretch it to do my exercises (particularly flexion - bending my hand down towards my inner forearm) it pulls horribly and painfully. It feels as though the plate/screws are being put under real pressure with this movement, although I do know the fracture itself is well-healed by now.

I only had one X-ray a few weeks after the op to check the plate was OK and they were happy with it and discharged me - but should I be worried? Is this 'pulling' pain a normal thing and I should just power through it? Will it eventually go away? I'd be interested in the experiences of any fellow ORIF-ers!

Sorry to hear you are having pain. I had this operation in 2016 but it healed up nicely and I never got any pain like you're describing. Yours doesn't sound quite right. Perhaps you should speak to your GP to get referred back to the Dept that did the op. Hope you get it sorted.

Thanks @CrowsInMyGarden. That’s interesting and a bit worrying! I’ve discussed it with my physio and she's quite insistent that it’s all fine - but perhaps next time I go I'll ask whether I can be referred back to the fracture clinic to check all's well. I have read that even if the plate is causing problems they don’t remove it for a year or so, because you’re still healing for all that time…

Can I ask how quickly you regained full mobility and weight-bearing with your wrist?

I'm so sorry OP I can't remember as it was 10 years ago. I know I never felt that it was taking too long if that makes any sense.

Good to know - thanks for the info; very useful.

Hi, I had this surgery a few years ago and had a similar sounding sensation to you. It just gradually got better with physio exercises and strengthening work. I think by about 4 months the pain was very minimal and it was as strong as it was before the fracture. Now it feels much stronger than my other wrist.

That’s really helpful, @LaughingLemur, thank you. I’ve spent flipping hours searching the internet to try and find out whether this was normal but there just doesn’t seem to be much in the way of actual experiences from people who've had the surgery - hence me starting the thread!

I had this surgery a few years ago and still had quite a bit of pain after several months, though I'm not sure it was quite the same movement as you are describing that caused the pain. I had a follow up with another x-ray, and they decided the ratio of lengths of the radius and ulna was off, and did a further surgery to shorten the ulna, which has helped (not pain free but much much better).

I guess outcomes can vary wildly. But ouch, @Monetsgardenbridge - that does sound uncomfortable, and it must have felt like a setback to have more surgery. Sorry you’re still having pain.

That all sounds awful, I’m so sorry you’re in such discomfort. Not quite the same, but I had pins inserted after breaking my wrist last July. I’m still doing the physio exercises eight months later, and trying to get full strength and movement. The physio discharged me although I have the option to go back until this month. I was panicking about it for a while as improvement seemed to move at glacial speed and if I tried to accelerate the process by exercising harder it increased the pain.

It’s still quite stiff and painful but I’m not panicking about it any more as I can see that it has actually improved a lot, and am resigned that my case will be one of the ones that take at least a year to get fully functional again.

My physio always stressed that it could take a long time, and took measurements of strength and movement so I could see there was some improvement even though it all still felt useless and crap. She was very reassuring about everything and said she would be referring me back to the hospital if she had any concerns.

Some sensations you have can be deceptive; I remember I thought my fingers were being blocked from bending forward by the metal plate in the last sling I had, but it turned out to be swelling that was the cause. That said, it might be worth seeing your gp for a second opinion just to be reassured if you’re not feeling that from the physio.