Fisher - Are Cowboys Too Optimistic On Dez Surgery?

[EMMITTnROY]

Kevin Durant is the quickest one I've heard of but there was a re-injury

On October 12, 2014, Durant was diagnosed with a Jones fracture in his right foot and was ruled out for six to eight weeks.[63] He went on to miss the first 17 games of the 2014–15 season before returning on December 2 against the New Orleans Pelicans.[64] On December 18, he injured his ankle against the Golden State Warriors,[65] returning to action on December 31 against the Phoenix Suns to score a season-high 44 points.[66] He then sprained his left big toe in late January.[67] On February 22, he was sidelined again after undergoing a minor procedure to help reduce pain and discomfort in his surgically repaired right foot,[68] and on March 27, he was officially ruled out for the season after deciding to undergo foot surgery.[69] In just 27 games, he averaged 25.4 points, 6.6 rebounds and 4.1 assists per game.

Yep, I'm a Thunder fan and so of course the first person I thought of was KD.

So KD initially took 7 weeks to heal. Knowing the situation as closely as I do, he had fully healed (the Thunder are always super cautious with injuries.)

The problem was that the screw in his foot kept rubbing up against the bone and had to eventually be replaced by another screw, which led to more complications.

If there are no issues with the screw in his foot, I think 6-8 weeks will be a fair timeline to guesstimate here.

 

[DTown214]

I don't know much about the injury but I wouldn't compare it that much to Kevin Durant's. Mainly because KD has a very skinny/lanky body and his bones look like twigs.

 

[StarBoyz83]

If he's not back by Miami or Tampa games then I'll get worried. I think dallas will still be in contention by those games. Not too worried right now.

 

[Roadtrip635]

Looking at similar injuries, looks like more than 4-6 weeks. Just hope Dez doesn't become his own worst enemy. and pushes too hard and makes it worse

 

[romothesavior]

3,581 yds and 28 TDs...one is in an Eagles uniform...the other looks to be on the shelf for 8 weeks and diluted for a few weeks after that. That is some serious loss of production from last year. The remaining guys have some big shoes to fill.

This may end up being the year where Romo either silences his most recalcitrant detractors, who cite a vaunted running game for his stellar numbers, or he regresses toward a slightly less heroic season.

The answer will depend largely on the coaching staff. This team has plenty of weapons to be explosive, but they need to have a good scheme to utilize them.

 

[Doc50]

Doc50 working here in the Bay Area I was told a story about Al Davis calling into a Operating Room at Stanford Hospital while a player was having surgery and saying while on speaker phone, Player X is needed in 2 weeks so you do just enough so that he is available I was told that story by 3 different people in Nursing

It would be reasonable for a GM to get get an inter-operative update on a knee surgery, especially in the pre-MRI era, whereupon the findings of a partially torn ACL would be unaddressed, and a torn meniscus cleaned up, in an attempt to save the player's season. The player's consent for this option would need to have been certified to avoid charges of assault and battery.

A good example of fast recovery from arthroscopy is the 2008 American olympic trials marathon, won by Joan Benoit, who had knee arthroscopy 17 days earlier.
She went on to become our first women's olympic marathon champion 3 months later in LA.

 

[erod]

Julio Jones had it, and he was lost for the season. Hakeem Nicks had it, and he's never returned to form. Kevin Durant had it and had complications that led to a long (and ongoing) struggle.

Some others have healed more quickly and with less complications.

So basically, we won't know until we know.

 

[Doc50]

I wonder if stem cell injections would help. Such treatments could also help with ligament damage I believe. Would be very interested in hearing the medical experts on this board chime in with their opinions.

http://ww2.kqed.org/science/2015/02/05/new-stem-cell-therapy-fixing-hard-to-heal-bone-fractures/

Stem cell therapy would be an option for complex non-union fracture treatment, when healing is impaired. Dez's frx doesn't qualify.

 

[perrykemp]

Julio Jones had it, and he was lost for the season. Hakeem Nicks had it, and he's never returned to form. Kevin Durant had it and had complications that led to a long (and ongoing) struggle.

Some others have healed more quickly and with less complications.

So basically, we won't know until we know.

This is a really interested read:

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/...hat-to-know-about-his-broken-fifth-metatarsal

They talk about Bengals WR Marvin Jones who had this injury. They provide a fair amount of medical info about this kind of injury.

The downside of the Marvin Jones example -- the Bengals originally projected Jones to be out 6-8 weeks after his surgery on his Jones fracture, however, in the end he ended up out for the entire season.

Some of text of the article can be found below:

Fifth metatarsal fractures are not uncommon in football, and an eight-week recovery time is definitely reasonable. The surgical fixation of the fracture will help ensure such a time frame, as fifth metatarsal fractures often do not heal well on their own. Even with surgery, however, nothing is a guarantee.

As is often the case with injuries, it all comes down to blood flow.

More than likely, Jones suffered, believe it or not, a so-called "Jones" fracture. A stress fracture—usually occurring in a slightly different location relative to a true Jones fracture, a subtle distinction that is a bit beyond the scope of this article—is also possible.

The fifth metatarsal runs from the base of the little toe to the midfoot.

Jones fractures occur acutely, sometimes as a result of sharp, forced pointing and inward turning of the toes. Stress fractures develop more slowly over time. Both types involve areas of bone without robust blood supplies.

Without strong blood flow, any type of fracture runs the risk of nonunion, a complication describing a fracture that reattaches incompletely or not at all.

Surgery aims to avoid such a possibility.

During a fifth metatarsal fixation operation, a surgeon—often a foot and ankle specialist—will insert a piece of metal hardware, such as a screw, into the bone. The screw will fix the bone into its proper anatomical position while it heals as best it can. Depending on the unique characteristics of the athlete and injury, the surgeon may also place pieces of bone from elsewhere in the body, called a bone graft, into the area to help stimulate healing.

Following surgery, Jones' medical team will likely advise the wideout to not bear any weight on his foot for several weeks. Bearing weight too early runs the risk of moving the fracture further out of place.

Jones will also probably receive additional rounds of X-rays at set intervals to gauge the progress of his fracture's union around the screw. Once X-rays begin to demonstrate reunion, he may slowly return to weight-bearing status, progressively increasing his activity until he can return to full speed without pain.

That said, according to a 2002 study by C. M. Larson and colleagues in the American Journal of Sports Medicine, returning to full activity before images show complete union of a Jones fracture probably increases the risk of repeat fracture or incomplete union down the line.

Larson also found that elite athletes failed surgical treatment more often than casual competitors.

In other words, let the waiting game begin.
​

 

[windjc]

There's been no confirmation that it was a Jones fracture which is in a special area of the bone.

At any rate, Dez could be back in 4-6 weeks. One is the length of time for the bone to heal, which is about 3 weeks. The second thing is pain tolerance.

You cannot compare an Nba player and an Nfl receiver. How they use their feet is completely different. Durant has to be constantly moving planting and cutting for 60 minutes. Dez is mostly walking and standing. Heck he can even sit for half the game. Completely different.

Plus, most of these bad recoveries were screw related, not bone.

So 4-6 weeks is reasonable.

 

[burmafrd]

Julio broke the screw so it had to be redone.

 

[AsthmaField]

His happened in week 5 not week 1 so he had less time to heal.

And their season wasn't going very well anyway... so no reason to rush him back.

 

[AsthmaField]

Hoping for the best but every article says it's a jones fracture. And speaking to someone in the medical field this morning they laughed when I said "4 weeks." They also said "his full range of motion will be gone. "

Range of motion? lol.

This has zero to do with range of motion.

I'm not laughing at you just at whoever it was that told you his full range of motion would be gone.

 

[dallasdave]

Yep, I'm a Thunder fan and so of course the first person I thought of was KD.

So KD initially took 7 weeks to heal. Knowing the situation as closely as I do, he had fully healed (the Thunder are always super cautious with injuries.)

The problem was that the screw in his foot kept rubbing up against the bone and had to eventually be replaced by another screw, which led to more complications.

If there are no issues with the screw in his foot, I think 6-8 weeks will be a fair timeline to guesstimate here.

That would be good, get back get in game shape and lead the Cowboys into the playoffs !!!!