Jim Bonney's story

My name is Jim Bonney. I'm a 25-year-old Royal Marines Officer. I live with my wife Kirsty in Topsham near Exeter in South West England. 18 months ago I had a serious mountaineering accident where I fell about 1000ft whilst attempting to climb Mt. Hunter in Alaska.  During the fall my feet were caught in some ice and twisted out of my boots causing, amongst other things a fracture dislocation of my right ankle, which involved fracturing the neck of my Talus.  After a year and a half of sustained rehabilitation, two operations to re-fix non-unions and a bout of MRSA my fracture is not reunited.

Disappointingly the medial aspect of the Talus is necrotic and is beginning to collapse and by doing aggressive walking rehabilitation I have destroyed the cartilage on the bearing surface of the Talar dome and on the ends of the Tibia and Fibula.  Clinically the ankle is destroyed as an articular joint and that leaves me with two options. To have the ankle fused, fixing it at 90 degrees at the end of my leg or seemingly a more drastic option is to have a transtibial below knee amputation.  A decision that is not an easy one to call.

My decision is based on my need to return to the level of activity that I was at prior to my accident and crucially therefore re-attaining my quality of life.

I have spent a month researching both options and my conclusion is that an ankle fusion will not give me the functional ability I desire.  Furthermore, there is by no means a certainty that having gone through the operation I will not encounter clinical complications and require further surgery.  A below knee amputation will enable me to do every thing that I did before with out exception but has a lengthy rehabilitation curve. It seems from now the decision is a simple one.  I just need to take some 'brave pills' and get on with it, and of course look forward to the future.

Whilst I'm in a position that is unenviable, I feel that by publishing my thoughts I may help myself come to terms with the decision that I've made and in so doing might help some one else out there who is facing similar choices.