595
“Tf???” (thelemmy.club)
submitted 6 days ago by to c/science_memes@mander.xyz
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cross-posted from: https://thelemmy.club/post/54296827

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[–] 3 points 5 days ago* (last edited 5 days ago) (11 children)

To be clear, othopedics is not my area of expertise,

edit - ortho specialty chimed in. Sounds like it's responsible for much less than I understood - see the next comment in the chain.

so grain of salt, but to my understanding, it's basically the radius bone, but of the leg. Aim your toes forward in the normal anatomical position; now rotate your entire foot to the left or right. That's your fibula working. Without it, very limited rotation; but otherwise you can still walk and function mostly normally, just a bit impaired.

I have no idea how 'chunk missing in the middle' plays into that. Guessing you'd still have some rotation, but without a secure anchor point, it wouldn't be great.

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  • [–] 6 points 5 days ago (10 children)

    Aim your toes forward in the normal anatomical position; now rotate your entire foot to the left or right. That's your fibula working. Without it, very limited rotation; but otherwise you can still walk and function mostly normally, just a bit impaired

    Eh.... I do specialize in orthopedics and rehabilitation. You can still do all these things without a fully functional fibula, just to a reduced degree. The fibula only contributes to a few degrees of range of motion in the lower limb, we are talking about millimeters. It can be noticeable given enough time or a high enough level of vigorous activity. Most people would live a fairly active lifestyle without noticing this kind of damage to the fibula.

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  • [–] 1 point 3 days ago (2 children)

    It can be noticeable given enough time or a high enough level of vigorous activity.

    So are we talking this would impact you if you're an elite athlete, but not an advanced amateur? Or is it more that it'll impact sports where changing direction quickly matters (like any football or court sport) but not more steady ones (like cycling or running)?

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  • [–] 2 points 3 days ago (1 child)

    You'd probably notice it more if you were doing sports with a lot of lateral movements, pivoting, and changing direction. Not so much with something like cycling. You might notice over time it if you were doing something like marathons as it does help absorb some ground force reaction on heel strike.

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  • [–] 2 points 5 days ago (4 children)

    we are talking about millimeters

    No shit? I would have guessed at least like 15 degrees of rotation. I think I took the radius comparison a bit too literal.

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  • [–] 5 points 5 days ago (3 children)

    The radius moves a lot more than the fibula, which makes sense considering the need for moderate rigidity for weight bearing. The fibula only moves around a degree in internal and external rotation and less than a degree in the sagital tilting.

    If you think about the rom in the ankle compared to the wrist it makes a bit more sense.

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  • [–] 4 points 5 days ago (2 children)

    Yeah I wasn't thinking ankle at all. And even here and now, I'm trying to rotate my own leg while keeping the ankle rigid, and... yea it doesn't go very far. Never really appreciated just how large a role the ankle plays there.

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  • [–] 2 points 5 days ago (1 child)

    Yeah, it's the only weight bearing compound triplanar joint in the body. So it's a lot more complex than something like the ball and socket joint of your hip. That's why ankle and foot surgeries face a lot more complications and need for revisions compared to most other orthopedic operations.

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  • [–] 1 point 5 days ago* (last edited 5 days ago) (1 child)

    So you wouldn't notice it unless you're a ballerina or something like that?

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  • [–] 1 point 5 days ago

    You'd probably eventually notice just after a long time if you are fairly active, even a loss of rom of a couple degrees adds up over time. You would probably notice a lot faster if you were an athlete, just because the issues would compound faster and you're more connected to your body.

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