Re: Question for Kestas

[Kestas <Kestutis.Kveraga@dartmouth.edu>]

At 10:04 10/23/2001 -0400, you wrote:
>Kestas,
>
>Presumably, you saw the Herald piece today about Battie's pain management.

Just got back from vacation and read it. 

>How bad is this ankle?  How could a sprain be a career-threatening injury?

Easily. I know "ankle sprain" gives this impression of a trivial injury to
people who haven't experienced  a 2nd- or 3rd degree "ankle sprain".
"Sprain" is actually a misnomer, because in the higher-degree sprains the
ligaments are not simply stretched beyond their limits (resulting in
microtears - thus "sprain"), but usually completely torn, often with bone
damage. There's also accompanying damage to muscle tendons and muscles
themselves and major trauma to the ankle joint. Since the ligaments
stabilize the joint, making it move in its intended planes, and the muscles
make it move so, you can see how it might be a problem, because such
injuries take months and years to heal, if getting back to 80% of
pre-injury function can be considered being healed.  
That's why when I was reading about Mike Miller's being back in action "in
a couple of weeks" in the Orlando area press (I vacationed in Cocoa Beach),
I was shaking my head ruefully at how naive these people are, given that
Miller suffered a bad "sprain" with bone avulsion (basically, the ligaments
tearing off the bone and taking chunks of  bone with them). 
It took 2 surgeries to allegedly repair Grant Hill's ankle, and now he
sprained it without stepping on anything  - just running backwards.
    
>More importantly, what is significant about the six month figure Battie
>gives?

IMO, it's just an arbitrary, hopeful figure. It may be more or less than
that, depending on the particulars of Battie's injury and his healing
abilities.  I still haven't fully recovered from a bad sprain that happened
more than 2 years ago and, according to my ortho-surgeon, never will. If I
were a professional athlete, it would be a career-ending injury, because I
still can't run (let alone play basketball) on it without suffering pain
and immobility for several days after it. I hope Battie is luckier. 

Kestas