Interesting case - Achilles tendon laceration from broken saw blade

I thought I would share this interesting case with you.

This patient had an unfortunate encounter with a stone cutting saw.  The blade broke and eventually made its way to the back of the ankle, lacerating the Achilles tendon.

The Achilles tendon is located on the back part of the ankle and is the major contributor to the ankle push off strength.

Although most Achilles tendon repairs can be treated without surgery using an accelerated Achilles tendon rehabilitation protocol.  This patient's lesion showed a wide gap (>2cm) between the tendon edges.  Because of this, we elected to proceed with surgery.   Here is what I found:

This video shows the lacerated Achilles tendon edges.  The following video shows the Achilles tendon after repair.

Achilles Tendon Repair

The repair was very strong and the patient will continue with the accelerated rehab program.