Pain and pitting edema following a fall onto legs and midfoot fracture.

[Jeff_from_Ohio]

Hello,

One month ago I fell, landed on my legs and fractured my right midfoot.  Surprisingly, after the acute pain dissipated I developed serious aching pain from my mid thigh down to the foot.  Lately I have also noticed that I have pitting edema = 45 seconds in that same ankle.  I am 43, male, have a history of a factor 12 defficiency making me hypercoagulable, have had two DVT's and am now on lifelong coumadin therapy with a theraputic INR.  I do not have any leg pain from flexing my ankle and no widespread swelling of the leg or thigh.

I am not trying to diagnose myself but still wonder if I may have a blood clot somewhere or may have injured more than initially detected..  Any professional's thought on this matter would be appreciated greatly.

[caregiver222]

A metatarsal fracture can come in two forms. A clean fracture, or more likely a greenstick fracture, which is a partial fracture.  Swelling is the norm. They take about three months to heal. What you have is called a "focal finding". It is very likely due to the inflammation secondary to the injury. Normally immobilization with a plaster cast for a short time is prescribed for such a fracture. The x-rays are often inconclusive. If there is no cast elevation and a rubbing of a cortisone cream on the foot will help. In the case of such injuries the idea is to avoid the swelling by an immediate wrap with an elastic bandage wrapped circumferentially and overlapping snugly, but not too tight. Once the swelling takes place it's hard to get it down. Unless there is numbness, blue color, or loss of sensation it is unlikely there is a clot, especially if your dorsalis pedis pulse is strong. Numbness and blue color are hallmarks of arterial oclusion. A podiatrist is probably the best medical professional to consult. They are sometimes looked down upon by the rest of the medical profession, but they know everything possible about the foot.