I’ve wondered the exact same thing—if autografts would’ve made the numbness less weird or shorter. My surgeon said with autografts, there’s often more soreness at the donor site, but sensation issues can still happen either way. I spent weeks Googling “is this normal?” and honestly, everyone seems to heal so differently. It’s kind of reassuring to know I’m not the only one who felt off for months...
That numbness thing really freaked me out too. I kept poking my chin for weeks trying to figure out if it was getting better or if I’d just gotten used to it. My ortho talked about autografts but warned me about extra pain where they’d take the tissue... honestly, I was so worried about adding another sore spot that I went with the allograft. Did anyone else have weird tingling come and go months after? Sometimes I can’t tell if it’s healing or just nerves being weird.
I totally get the numbness thing—mine stuck around for a while and would randomly tingle or feel “off” for months. I went with the allograft too, mostly because I didn’t want to deal with two sore spots and my insurance covered it better. The weird tingling honestly just faded out over time. Sometimes I’d panic and think something was wrong, but it slowly got better. Definitely a relief not to have extra pain from another surgery spot...
Did your doc mention any differences in healing time or long-term strength between the allograft and autograft? I keep reading that autografts might have a lower risk of re-tear, but I’m not sure how much that really matters for most people. I get not wanting two sore spots, though... the idea of extra pain is definitely a turn-off.
I get not wanting two sore spots, though... the idea of extra pain is definitely a turn-off.
Totally get that. But honestly, I went with an allograft partly because I couldn’t justify the extra cost (and pain) of dealing with two recovery sites. My insurance barely covered the basics. Yeah, maybe autografts have a lower re-tear risk, but if you’re not a pro athlete, is that slight difference worth the extra hassle and bills? For me, being able to get back to work sooner and save some cash made it a no-brainer.
