Gerald Swindle is home recovering from a major health scare that could have cost him his leg, or worse.
After undergoing arthroscopic surgery on his right knee on Sept. 26, Swindle suffered compartment syndrome in his thigh and needed an emergency fasciotomy. He had three more surgeries over the past week, including one Monday that allowed him to go home that night.
“We didn’t really understand the severity of it, how dangerous it was, until probably after the third surgery,” Swindle’s wife, LeAnn, said. “When you start learning about things like muscle loss, loss of limb and death, it’s a scary, scary thing. I don’t think either one of us realized how bad that could have been had we not brought him back to the hospital quick.”
Compartment syndrome is extreme pressure from fluids, WebMD states. An injury can impede blood flow to tissue, cause swelling and pressure as fascia that holds muscles together does not expand easily. Acute cases can result in severe tissue damage, loss of body function, amputation and even death.
“High compartment syndrome pressure would be 30,” LeAnn said. “When they checked Gerald’s, it was 80. It was extremely high.”
In the fasciotomy, a long incision was made through the skin on his thigh and a certain section of fascia. The wound was partially closed but pressure built back up and the cut had to be lengthened, LeAnn said. A sponge inside the leg and vacuum then helped eliminate fluids. On Monday morning, Swindle had healed well enough that they closed the wound entirely. He was released from the hospital that night.
Gerald is getting around with a walker, LeAnn said, and he’s elevating and icing the leg. His first physical therapy was Thursday, and she expects him to be on two crutches soon, then one and walking in another week or so. Oh, and then fishing.
“They really expect him to heal quickly,” LeAnn said. “Monday morning, it had healed more so than what they expected. Working to stay in shape is something they say has helped him heal.”
On Sept. 18, Swindle won his second Toyota Bassmaster Angler of the Year title after the steadiest of seasons. He cashed checks in all nine regular season events and reached Championship Sunday six times. With an AOY in 2004, he is the 11th angler with multiple titles.
LeAnn said his knee issues began during the Bassmaster Elite season after they went on a run. He complained of discomfort, and in June, he had to have fluid drained from the knee and a cortisone shot. He had another episode with fluid in his shin and foot.
His arthroscopic surgery to repair a torn meniscus and clean out arthritic areas went well. Then in the hour-and-a-half drive home from Birmingham to Guntersville, Gerald’s leg had swollen. Still medicated, he took a nap while LeAnn began contacting doctors to alert them. She even sent photos and video.
The doctors prodded them to return, and Gerald debated it before driving back, she said. When they got back to the doctor’s office, Swindle took a video later posted on Facebook showing a horribly swollen thigh that was hard and cold to the touch. His weeklong hospital stay started then with the emergency surgery.
“I’m just so grateful that he made that decision” to return, LeAnn said. “It would have been so easy to go to bed, elevate it, ice it and maybe it will be better tomorrow. I am so thankful we did not make that decision. It could have been a totally different outcome.
“If we had another doctor who just wanted to go home that night and not follow up … He could have easily said, ‘Hey, come back tomorrow.’ He could have lost most the muscle in his leg and possibly the entire leg. Scary stuff.”
LeAnn said it wasn’t until around the third surgery that a doctor sat down with them and really detailed what could have happened. The doctor explained how the fasciotomy is a limb-saving procedure, the 10- to 12-inch incision helping relieve pressure.
Although they have yet to see the wound, they most likely won’t be providing the answer to a Facebook post asking fans to guess how many stitches he would need. Gerald did post a couple humorous videos from his hospital bed, but LeAnn said that was during pain-free moments.
“Those pain pumps, they work,” she said. “You can mash that little button and you get that release, but when they take that away and put you on oral medication, it’s a totally different game.”
He’s experienced tremendous pain, she said, and they won’t be joking about this for some time. She’s got plans on instituting a new health care rule, especially after instances like this, his attempt to super glue his finger tip back on, and him falling out of a tree stand a few years ago.
“Your days of trying to patch yourself up are over,” she said.