Lindsey Vonn says surgery saved her from having her left leg amputated following Olympic crash

VAIL, Colo. (AP) — American skier Lindsey Vonn says she practically misplaced her left leg following a daunting crash within the ladies’s downhill on the Milan Cortina Olympics.

Vonn shared in an Instagram post on Monday that her accidents went far past the complicated tibia fracture within the leg she initially revealed after clipping a gate and crusing off track simply 13 seconds into her run on Feb. 8.

The 41-year-old Vonn stated the trauma from the crash led to compartment syndrome within the leg. Compartment syndrome entails extreme stress build up inside a muscle, both from bleeding or swelling. Excessive stress restricts blood circulation and might result in everlasting harm if not handled shortly.

“When you’ve got a lot trauma to 1 space of your physique in order that there’s an excessive amount of blood and it will get caught and it mainly crushes every little thing,” Vonn stated.

Vonn credited Dr. Tom Hackett, an orthopedic surgeon who works for Vonn and Crew USA, for conducting a fasciotomy to salvage her leg.

“He filleted it open (and) let it breathe, and he saved me,” she stated.

Vonn famous that Hackett was solely in Cortina as a result of she was competing after tearing the ACL in her left knee shortly earlier than the Olympics.

“If I hadn’t had achieved that, Tom wouldn’t have been there (and he) wouldn’t have been in a position to save my leg,” she stated.

Vonn, who stated she has been discharged from the hospital, additionally broke her proper ankle within the crash.

“It has been fairly the journey and by far essentially the most excessive and painful and difficult harm I’ve ever confronted in my total life occasions 100,” she stated.

Vonn underwent a number of surgical procedures throughout a week-long keep at a hospital in Treviso, Italy, following the accident. She credited each Hackett and Italian docs for his or her efforts to restore her leg, which she stated was “in items” following the accident.

She says she struggled with ache and blood loss within the instant aftermath and needed to obtain a transfusion to assist elevate her hemoglobin ranges.

Vonn, who stated she is “very a lot motionless,” is confined to a wheelchair in the meanwhile, however has turned her consideration to her rehab and is working her method towards having the ability to use crutches. She estimated it is going to take a few 12 months for the bones in her left leg to heal. Solely after that can docs have the ability to go in and restore the torn ACL, which performed no function within the crash.

“It’s going to be a protracted street,” she stated. “I at all times combat and we maintain going.”

Vonn careworn she had “no regrets” about her comeback following a six-year retirement or her determination to ski on the Olympics regardless of the knee harm.

“I want it had ended in another way, however I’d moderately go down swinging than not attempt in any respect,” stated Vonn, who was atop the World Cup collection rankings within the downhill when she arrived in Cortina. “I believe what I used to be in a position to obtain was greater than anybody anticipated to start with. … This 12 months was unimaginable and so price every little thing.”

She likened her accidents to “one blip on the radar.” She didn’t go into any form of element about her aggressive profession, although her father, Alan Kildow, instructed The Related Press shortly after the accident he would love her to retire.

“Life is life and we’ve got to take the punches that come,” Vonn stated. “Going to do the perfect I can with this one. It actually knocked me down. However I’m like Rocky. I’ll simply maintain getting again up.”