Cuboid Joint Injury

[morepork]

Dear Dr. Gross,
I had an inversion injury to my cuboid/calcaneal joint  2 and a half years ago. I did not know it was fractured until problems developed and  after 6 months  I had a CT  scan which revealed a fracture where it articulates in the joint. It had healed with a less than 1mm stepoff.
My problem is that the area around the cuboid swells (showed in a MRI Scan) after a few hours use and becomes painful again to walk.  It feels like something gets stuck or in the wrong position.  But it does come right  again. I have been seeing an orthopaedic surgeon who has treated it for the last year with cortisone injections.  When it wears off I get the same symptoms frequently.
My specialists say he can't fix it and has not seen this problem before. He has thought of  fusing my hindfoot but is not sure that will work so is hesitant to do.  My arch has since collapsed as the posterior tibialis has a partial tear. (more cortisone!)He says the cartilidge has gone in the joint.  The cortisone has not worked and I feel I have not made any progress after 2 and a half years.!!  I am a 55 year old female who leads an active life - my husband wants me to go sailing all summer!  and I have a large property to look after.   I am feeling frustrated as my specialist recently told me I should just live with it !  It affects what I can do and I don't want to live with it.
Have you heard of this before ?  I would really appreciate some help.  Thankyou for your time in reading this and apologies for such a long letter!

[Michael L Gross, MD]

Post traumatic arthritis in any location can be difficult to treat, however in the foot it can be crippling. It is difficult to adress the specifics of your problem in this venue, but I would suggest an Orthopedic foot and ankle specialist, not a general orthopedist. If there is not a good one locally, I suggest checking at the local medical school.

[morepork]

Thankyou Michael for    your advice.
I guess it was a tricky question.!  It has given me a lot of pain.  I have been under a
an orthopaedic surgeon who specializes in foot problems.  I saw him again recently and he
has come up with another - plan of attack - today I had cortisone injected right into the cuboid joint with the aid of ultrasound.  He said if this is successful he will fuse only that joint.
So hopefully he is on the right track !
Once again -thanks - its great that people like you are keen to help total strangers and any advice is appreciated greatly!