PERCS tips

If you’re having trouble sleeping with your night splints after PERCS, you can ask your surgeon to see if you can alternate legs (i.e., wearing it on your left leg one night and your right leg the next night instead of both at once). Your surgeon’s answer may vary depending on the situation, but my surgeon told me I could do that, and it definitely helped on the nights that I had trouble sleeping.

You can also ask if you can wear them for several hours during the day instead of at night.

If you have knee immobilizers, it’s much more comfortable to wear leggings or light, stretchy pajama pants underneath them. If I tried to just wear pajama shorts, the immobilizers felt kind of scratchy.

After PERCS, stay at least an extra night in your hotel if you can. I healed a lot in just a few days. I also booked some extra PT sessions (since they were covered by my insurance anyway—this may or may not be the case for you), and I found them really helpful!

Consider trying the Graston technique if a PT clinic near you is certified to do it. They use a tool to scrape at your tendons and it can help break down scar tissue. I did it a lot before PERCS, and it helped me gain some range-of-motion (temporarily; it had to be done once a week or so for me to keep my flexibility, which is why I ended up pursuing PERCS). I was also told that I could resume this several months after PERCS, once my tendons had completely healed.

Ask if you can trim the “fishing line” if it gets itchy. You’ll notice that some of the lines from the dissolvable stitches poke out of your skin; it feels like a fishing line material. I was told that I could trim the line using sterile scissors once it started to bother me. Eventually, it should fall out as the inner part dissolves.

Also: I created the Hospital Tips page with SDR surgery in mind, but many of those tips may be helpful for PERCS as well.