My next VA medical center appointment...

[Guest guest]

....will be with a foot and ankle specialist. The doctor that saw me

Thursday, at my Orthopedics Clinic appointment, says that the

specialist is, basically, no nonsense in his approach to treating foot

and ankle injuries. If he don't have to cut, he won't, and he'll order

the proper tests to determine whether or not he should go into my

ankle. The orthopedic doctor looked at my ankle x-rays, that were

taken in December during my compensation determination exam, and saw

that there are some arthritic bone spurs, aside from some bone

degeneration.

I may end up either taking a personal day, or swapping nights with the

guy that works on the A rotation, but it'll be interesting to see what

tests will be ordered, and what the results will be. I may not be a

doctor/orthopedic doctor, but I do know that my December 2005 x-rays

look different from my December 2004 x-rays, with the biggest

difference being the bone spurs. I didn't bother taking my work boots

with me, as the removal of the add-in inserts solved the heel rubbing

problem I'd been having, so no real reason to worry about that.

When I have my next regular check-up, in August, I'll have to tell my

GP that it might be time to look inside my right knee, again. Tuesday

night at work, I definitely had some breakthrough pains in the knee,

to the point that I was slowed down a bit, and was walking with a

limp. I told the orthopedic doctor about it, but since I was there

about my ankle, that's what was addressed on Thursday. Hopefully the

breakthrough knee pain don't become a regular occurance, but that

they've started becoming more frequent, since my January check-up, I'm

not going to hold my breath. I'll just have to bear it for a few more

months, until I have my August check-up.

Matt in Indiana