Tendon tears related to sports and being type 1

I blew my achilles tendon yesterday during a soccer game and am completely and thoroughly upset about this. About a year ago, I blew a quad tendon during a game, never had surgery, and now this. This is going to require surgery and I think these injuries are a direct result of aging as well as being type 1. I've also experienced calf issues where my calves lock up or feel like they're tearing and I have to quit playing. I thought I had this figured out as it was due to a dehydration/electrolyte imbalance, but then suffered this injury yesterday.

I think I'm going to have to hang up my cleats and find some low impact sports to play like surfing, cycling, jogging, yoga, and stick to weight lifting. The sprinting and cutting in soccer is just way too hard on my body now and I fear yet another injury that'll require surgery, like an ACL. I'm looking at close to 4-6 mos of recover from this.

I've read some articles about glucose accumulation in tendons resulting in the fiber growing thicker and more brittle. Has anyone experienced any major tendon tears requiring surgery. I honestly wish my endo would've raised this "potential" injury with me as I would've slowed down or found something else to do.

Thoughts?

One of my buddies plays on a team and I was thinking "that would be fun" but he's 36 and I'm 44 and, after thinking about it some more, I figured "you know, that sounds like a good way to blow a gasket...". I had sprained my ankle playing soccer in high school and had problems with it for years that finally went away after a couple of years of Tae Kwon Do, starting around 2004-5.

That is a real bummer, it is going to take a while to recover.

I had also heard that diabetes can result in thickening of the tendons, I think that contribued to my Carpal Tunnel Syndrome. I've heard that the higher blood sugars cause additional glycation of the proteins in the tendons and cause the thickening. But I've not heard that they make tendons brittle. And It looks like you were only diagnosed in 2007 and really have pretty good control, so even if it were true, I'm not sure would have accumulated much damage.

Perhaps others have some information?

If they have to do surgery, I'd wonder if they'd be able to differentiate between a "simple" tear/ rupture of the tendon and one involving diabetes?

Well, it's completely torn. He said I'm looking at a up to 6 or even 12 mos recovery process. It's not as labor intensive as an acl, it's just a lot of waiting for the tendon to stretch back slowly. Much like braces, they strap your foot in a boot and adjust by degrees several times over a 6 month period. Pretty much said it was a freak accident and what happened was a change of direction with pace and my calf muscle was much stronger than the tendon and it just snapped under force. Doesn't think being diabetic had anything to do with it. Regardless, I'm just starting this process and don't want to go through this again. Low impact sports for sure from here on out.....

I'm sorry about the Achille's that just totally sucks. I have not had any bad tears, but I have had some bad sprains playing tennis that put me in a walking cast for a couple of weeks. And recently I just got out of bed and was reduced to a ball, crumpled up on the floor from achille's tendonitis. I literally could not walk. I don't know if it's a matter of D or just a matter of age. I have had D for 37 years but it has only been the last couple of years once I hit my 50's that I have had tendon injuries and usually during tennis which like soccer requires a lot of sprinting and cutting. My husband blew out his achille's playing softball, he didn't have surgery but wore a cast for a very long time. I remember him rolling around the house on an office chair. I don't know if your endo would've raised this particular potential with you, but I would have thought that whoever you saw when you blew out your quad would have.

■■■■■■ luck mate :(
not sure if there is a correlation, i hope not! But age+sports where there are quick directional changes = increase chance of injury, even without D. I gave up football due to always being injured/sore and that was without diabetes. Try running once healed, be one of us ;)...write some long term goals down, and short ones re: rehab goals etc. Stay as focused as possible, you want to try and keep up some activity! All the best Michael!