Z out 2-4 weeks

[SoundBreaker]

Just so you know...

There is a chance that Zydrunas may never even play again. I know this sounds like someone who may be talking out of the side of their head, but trust me, I'm not. The reason that I am telling you guys (and ladies) this, is because I think there is at-least a 50/50 chance that the Cavaliers are trying to keep the severity of this injury quiet until after the trade deadline.

 

[wuck]

Treatment for OCD depends on when the problem is discovered. If the problem is discovered immediately after a twisting injury to the ankle, immobilization in a cast for six weeks may be suggested to see if the bone injury heals. You may need to keep weight off the foot and use crutches during this period of immobilization.

Randolphkeys: let's hope Z doesn't have that OCD condition, although I would say that kind of grim scenario is certainly plausible in relationship to what we know (bone chip, discovered late). Thus, if things go wrong: bone chip doesn't heal, have to mobilize, ends up requiring surgery, Z comes back at late in the year or misses the season. The 6 weeks mentioned in the article sounds like a lot longer than the Cavs have discussed initially.

I used to only know that the foot bone was connected to the ankle bone and the ankle bone was connected to the leg bone....but now I know much more than I want to about the Talus and its brethren.

 

[Cavatt]

1 stinking game after he set the rebound record.

 

[Randolphkeys]

RandolphKeys: let's hope Z doesn't have that OCD condition, although I would say that kind of grim scenario is certainly plausible in relationship to what we know (bone chip, discovered late). Thus, if things to wrong: bone chip doesn't heal, have to mobilize, ends up requiring surgery, Z comes back at late in the year or misses the season. The 6 weeks mentioned in the article sounds like a lot longer than the Cavs have discussed initially.

I used to only know that ankle bone was connected to the foot bone but now I know much more than I want to about the Talus and its brethren.

Just remember that this medical website is a general timetable for normal shmucks like you and me who get injured. Zydrunas has an entire team of people working on his foot... including his own wife, who is in the medical field... I believe he met her during foot surgery number 64. Remember that the website stresses 6 weeks as the key checkup benchmark. I provided the website as general background information since some new poster informed us that the sky is falling, but i'm sure Z is getting state of the art care.

 

[Titus]

See post lower on this page.

 

[Da_James_Gang]

Just remember that this medical website is a general timetable for normal shmucks like you and me who get injured. Zydrunas has an entire team of people working on his foot... including his own wife, who is in the medical field... I believe he met her during foot surgery number 64. I provided the website as general background information since some new poster informed us that the sky is falling.

Very true, but Z also has a shit load of problems with that foot already. The avergae Joe doesn't have all those screws in there foot. Not saying that the sky is falling but just saying lol.

 

[wuck]

Just remember that this medical website is a general timetable for normal shmucks like you and me who get injured. Zydrunas has an entire team of people working on his foot... including his own wife, who is in the medical field... I believe he met her during foot surgery number 64. Remember that the website stresses 6 weeks as the key checkup benchmark. I provided the website as general background information since some new poster informed us that the sky is falling, but i'm sure Z is getting state of the art care.

Hey, I never admitted to being a normal schmuck!!!!!!!

I agree that Z is in the position to get the best care possible, plus he has been taking care of himself for a very long time. As he said, he was delighted that the injury had nothing to do with his feet (which looked good according to all report).

I hope he heals quick and the Cavs take extra precautions. I take comfort in the idea that Z could be back and healthy in time to play a big role in the playoffs (that time of year hasn't always been his strongest suit) and that the other Cavs (not only JJ) will have to improve in his absence. I want this experience to turn out to be one that ends up strengthening the whole team, even if means that regular season victories are tougher.

In all honesty, when the Cavs have played their best in the playoffs, home court advantage has not stopped them from beating their fiercest rivals. I hope they get it, but they haven't had to depend on it to beat the Pistons, etc. Cavs have usually not been perfect at home even at their best, so the #1 seed is important but not vital to their chances. Getting Z back and having some strength and height coming off the bench is most crucial to me.

 

[wuck]

Well, I based what I said on an article I read that said he fractured the Talus bone. It didn't say he had a chip, it said "fracture." Everything I said was based on that. If it is just a chip, then my research on this was for nothing.

In my original post, I finished by stating that I hoped that I was wrong. Well, if you are right (as well as the article I just read on NBA.com, which also say "chip"), then my hope will be reality.

It was originally reported in local papers and Cavs folks as a chip; some news agencies picked it up as "fracture". Just don't read the link in Randolphkeys' article completely, because a chip can lead to some time-consuming recovery, too...

 

[Da_James_Gang]

Another article, don't know if it was posted yet.

http://www.cleveland.com/cavs/index.ssf/2009/01/cavaliers_insider_chipped_bone.html

It was easy to see over the last couple of weeks that Zydrunas Ilgauskas' ankle wasn't right. Now the Cavaliers have firm evidence.
Concerned his left ankle sprain was not improving, Ilgauskas underwent another x-ray and MRI on Friday and learned he had chipped a bone in the back of the ankle. The team is purposely not setting an exact timetable, but the injury will likely keep him off the floor for a month.

"I played on it but it didn't feel good," Ilgauskas said. "I wasn't the player I should be."

Ilgauskas originally suffered the injury Dec. 10 in Philadelphia when he landed on former teammate Donyell Marshall's foot attempting to block a shot. He missed three games and returned to score 23 points Dec. 19 in Denver, making it appear as if it wasn't serious.

But the morning after the game he started feeling soreness and his recovery soon stalled. It showed on the court as he struggled to rebound and move. The Cavs attempted to deal with it by holding him out of practices but it did not progress as a normal sprain should.

It convinced him to get it checked again and the bone chip was discovered. The positive news for the team was the injury does not affect the structure of his foot, which was rebuilt nearly eight years ago after multiple breaks.

"One thing we don't want to do is rush it," Ilgauskas said. "We'll take it weekly and see how it goes; we really don't know."

Though it is still early in the season, it does not come at a great time in the schedule. Next week the Cavs begin a stretch of eight of 11 games on the road and face top-flight opponents in the Celtics, Hornets, Lakers, Trail Blazers, Magic, and Pistons.

The Cavs will use Anderson Varejao as their starting center and rely on rookie J.J. Hickson and veteran Lorenzen Wright more.

Most of the same stuff...

 

[Titus]

Okay, I apologize... I mistook Chip fracture to mean fracture of the Talus. This is because the first site I read said Talus fracture, and not chip fracture.

I have gone and found a site that fully explains Zydrunas' injury, and gives very good detail on what he went through.

In-fact, it almost sounds like they wrote it for him. Anyway:

The ankle is a joint which is formed by the tibia and fibula (bones above the ankle in the foreleg) and the talus (below the ankle joint). The ankle joint allows for the upwards (dorsiflexion) and downwards (plantarflexion) motion. The endof the shin bone (tibia) forms the inner bony prominence of the ankle called the medial malleolus. The outer bony prominence is called the lateral malleolus and is formed by the small outer bone in the foreleg called the fibula. <center><ahref="http: www.nucleusinc.com="">

</ahref="http:></center><center>Figure 1: Lateral (Side) View of RightFoot</center>Osteochondritis dissecans is an injury to the talus bone of the ankle joint. Because the ankle joint is so small, the amount of force that goes across the joint, with each step, has been estimated to be approximately 5-10 times a person's body weight.As a result of this tremendous force that occurs in the ankle joint, relatively small injuries to the articular surface of the talus often result in chronically painful injuries.
Osteochondritis dissecans is the result of the isolated loss of blood flow to a portion of the talus bone. Usually this occurs in conjunction with a history of trauma. It is sometimes also known as an osteochondral fracture of the talus, chip fractureof the articular surface or a chondral fracture of the talus.
The development of osteochondritis may be very slow. Initially, a person may sustain a twisting injury to the ankle. As the ankle is injured, the talus bone twists within the space between the tibia and fibula. As this twisting occurs, the ligamentsaround the ankle may be stretched (ANKLE SPRAINS). Unfortunately, in some people, as the twisting injury occurs, not only are the ankle ligaments stretched, but the talus bone strikes the tibia or fibula. When this occurs,some type of injury to the talus, tibia, or fibula happens. Typically, the majority of the damage occurs to the talus at the articular surface.
The articular surface (articular cartilage - WHAT IS A JOINT?) is normally nice and smooth. It has no blood supply. Without a blood supply, the potential for healing damage to the articular cartilage is minimal. Therefore,when this tissue is damaged, it may slowly deteriorate with the passage of time. As the articular surface deteriorates, the surface changes from a nice smooth frictionless surface to a rough cobblestone like surface. This rough degenerative surface is aform of arthritis.
When the ankle is twisted, and the talus impacts the tibia or fibula, the talar articular surface may be merely bruised, or a more serious injury may occur. If the twisting injury results in a shearing force to the talus as it impacts the tibia orfibula, then a chip fracture may occur. This "chip fracture" may either be complete, or incomplete, and it may be detached (loose body), partially detached, or non-displaced.
To further confuse things, the bone injury may not become visible on x-ray for several months.
When the chip becomes detached, then it floats freely inside the ankle joint. When this occurs, patients may develop a definite catching sensation that is associated with a loss of motion. In addition, the joint may become swollen and painful. Later,when the chip slips out of the way, the symptoms may improve, swelling decrease, and the may disappear - only to reappear at another time.
If the fragment is partially detached, then similar problems may occur.
However, if the fragment is not detached, then the only complaints may be pain and discomfort.
The location of the injury is on the articular surface of the talus. It may be located on either side of the talar dome. The talar dome is that semicircular portion of the talus that sits beneath the tibia. On this dome, the osteochondritis dissecansmay occur on either the medial or lateral sides of the talar dome (articular surface of the talus).
<center>

</center><center>DIAGNOSIS</center>

Initially, a physical exam should be done to try to determine the site of tenderness and the cause of the patient's complaint. During this process, the stability of the ligaments and tendons around the ankle is usually checked along with the range ofmotion of the joint. Palpation is used to determine the areas of tenderness and to check for signs of an effusion (collection of fluid within the joint).
Sometimes, it is necessary to aspirate (remove) the joint fluid collection to determine the type of fluid present. IF the fluid is bloody with fat globules present (lipohemarthrosis), then some type of injury to the bone may be the cause.
X-rays are taken to evaluate the talus, tibia, and fibula. With the x-rays, it is possible to check for signs of arthritis, loose bodies, chip fractures, fractures, and other bone abnormalities. Unfortunately, because the ankle bones overlap onx-rays, it is necessary to take multiple views from different angles in order to try to completely evaluate the bones. Even with multiple views, it is still possible for the overlapping bone images to hide abnormalities. For that reason, if patientsfail to improve, it is often necessary to obtain more sophisticated imaging studies such as MRIs, CT scans, bone scans, or tomograms. Unfortunately, none of these studies are 100% accurate.
With osteochondritis, sometimes, the initial imaging studies are normal. Only by repeating the imaging studies is the abnormality ever found. This is related to the fact the osteochondritis may take time to develop. Initially, the damage may be greatenough to cause very mild intermittent symptoms, but too small to be visualized on x-ray. With the passage of time, as the osteochondritis worsens, then changes begin to appear on the imaging studies.

The rest of the article and information can be found here: http://www.arthroscopy.com/sp09017.htm

 

[wuck]

Interesting to see these two quotes in the medical article:

To further confuse things, the bone injury may not become visible on x-ray for several months.

Even with multiple views, it is still possible for the overlapping bone images to hide abnormalities

There was some concern from RCF posters about why doctors didn't see the chip after the initial X-rays (e.g. why do we have lame doctors, or when did the chip occur) but it looks like this is common for these kinds of injuries. Now I'm glad the Cavs found the injury within the first few weeks (although it certainly looked like the injury was lingering with Z's faltering play). Better than waiting for it to become visible after several months!

From the medical course of action, it sounds like Z's bone chip is certainly not fully detached and hopefully it is very close to the bone and will heal back in place.

Soon.

 

[wuck]

Okay, I apologize... I mistook Chip fracture to mean fracture of the Talus. This is because the first site I read said Talus fracture, and not chip fracture.

Just don't be bringing that weak stuff in here again. :chuckles:

Honestly, it would be hard not to be worried about a Talus fracture since that's what you read first. Sorry for raking your posts over the coals a bit.

The really good news about all this is now no one will think you are a disguised Heath (edit: spoke too soon).

 

[Randolphkeys]

I just banned him for life, hate me if you want to. He is probably Heath, and if some new guy ever posts 28 times in one day and writes EXACTLY like Heath again, I will do the same. If he wasn't Heath, well...

Being a Mod is awesome.

:boxer:

 

[Da_James_Gang]

I believe it was him just based on his trade ideas, pretty much same stuff Heath has been spamming all over the realgm message boards since he got banned.

 

[kookoo]

I just banned him for life, hate me if you want to. He is probably Heath, and if some new guy ever posts 28 times in one day and writes EXACTLY like Heath again, I will do the same. If he wasn't Heath, well...

Being a Mod is awesome.

:boxer:

I don't think it was him. heath has only posted trade ideas. This guy didn't post as many and when he did, he didn't start the thread over and over. Plus he did do medical research unlike heath, who posted stupid trade ideas.