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Bruising normal for a year old injury?

I suffered a non-displaced lateral malleolus avulsion fracture Dec. 2015 (almost a year ago). I was splinted for a week, hard casted for 4 weeks, and determined not to be a surgical case since x-rays indicated the bone had healed. I wore an ankle brace for 4 months after the cast was removed, and did at home PT. I still occasionally suffer from swelling of my ankle (laterally and medially), but I also have bruising. The bruising seems to originate slightly proximal to the fracture site and runs along the peroneous tendons down to the base of my 5th metatarsal. I also have bruising at the base of my 4th digit and the medial aspect of the calcaneus. I want to know if this is at all normal. The only imaging that has been done is x-rays of my ankle, and the last ones were taken over the summer. No rads of my foot and no MRI or CT. My pain level is ok, but after a long day of working on my feet it can become pretty unbearable. Do I need to seek further help with an orthopedist? Is it possible I ruptured ligaments and/or tendons that have not healed? If so, would this now be a surgical case? Please help!
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Avatar universal
Hi Dfill, sorry to hear about your injury but love your use of medical terminology. Unfortunately the dorsal/plantar lateral mid foot is quite avascular, and as such healing is a slower process. Not sure where you are from but in Aus, you would have been put into a post op shoe following cast removal (eg. Darko shoe) which lowers the forces running though your foot and allows for that muscle/gait reintegration process.

You mentioned the pain becomes unbearable after a full day of work, this pain where is it and can you quantify it ( /10, type of pain, what makes it worst, what makes it better and how are you treating it?)    
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