‘A Crossroad in My Life’: Rebounding From Severe Leg Fracture (Video)

Robert Becker suffered what is potentially one of the most debilitating orthopedic injuries — a “tibial plateau fracture” — of his left leg.

The tibial plateau is a crucial weight-bearing part of the body that connects the thighbone (femur) to the shinbone through ligaments.  It is important primarily because of its link to the stability and motion of the knee joint, which can be compromised with this type of fracture.

Mr. Becker had his initial surgery outside of Miami after suffering an exposed tibial plateau fracture. He was then referred by his primary care physician to Charles Jordan, M.D., an orthopedic trauma surgeon with Miami Orthopedics & Sports Medicine Institute, for reconstructive follow-up surgeries and rehabilitation.

At the time, the journey ahead for Becker seemed bleak.

“I was at a crossroad in my life where someone was telling me — ‘you’re not going to walk again; you’re going to need a crutch for the rest of your life,” recalls Becker. “Then I meet this man (Dr. Jordan) who says, ‘I can fix it.’  He gave me a gift, which is the ability to walk, run and do everything I did prior to the incident.”

Surgeries requiring insertion of plates and rods (see image at left) were performed with the goal of re-establishing joint stability at the knee and tibial bone alignment, as well as restoring a full range of motion with minimal impact to soft tissues, such as ligaments and tendons. This preceded months of rehabilitation.

Miami Orthopedics & Sports Medicine Institute has the facilities, equipment and staff to oversee the physical rehabilitation of patients like Mr. Becker with “the most complex cases,” said Dr. Jordan.

“Patients who sustain these injuries, a lot of times, require multiple surgeries … They require months and even years of therapy just to regain enough to perform basic activities,” said Dr. Jordan. “He (Mr. Becker) recovered much faster than typical.  But it is more than anything a testament to how hard he worked after we were able to put him back together.”

Watch the video above with Dr. Jordan and Mr. Becker.