avulsion fracture healing time

I am a 45 year old woman, and I have a fifth metatarsal avulsion fracture due to rolling my foot and landing hard on concrete five weeks ago. It feels much better now and I am able to walk fairly normally, if carefully. I have been using a stiff soled boot provided by the doctor whenever I am not in the house, and I use an ultrasound bone healer once a day.

My question is, how long does it usually take for the fracture to fill in with new bone? I had an x-ray yesterday, and the crack is still quite visible (although the doctor said there was evidence of healing). The doctor said that I could now use sturdy shoes, and only use the boot if I was going to be on my feet a lot (I am a teacher) for the next week or so. He did not make another appointment for me, and told me I am 'in the home stretch'.

I guess I am concerned because obviously the crack is still there, and I don't want to do something stupid and mess it up when it is not fully healed yet, even though there is not much pain any more. Is it normal to still see the crack at five weeks? At what point can I go hiking and not worry about the fracture not being fully healed? It is not displaced, but the outside edge of the fracture has a little gap (it's more of a hairline otherwise).

[FootDoc]

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By your story, I assume that you had sustained an inversion injury of the foot which commonly results in an avulsion fracture at the styloid process at the base of the fifth metatarsal. If that is the case, because this is the point of insertion of the peroneus brevis tendon, often, instead of the bone fracturing in place or the tendon tearing, the bony insertion is frequently avulsed and continues to dwell within the tendon . . thus it is termed an avulsion fracture. In such a situation, because of the continuing pull of this tendon, it is difficult, without internal fixation (which is rarely appropriate in such a situation unless there is a great deal of torsional or lateral displacement), compression of the fracture segments is difficult and very often, instead of normal bone to bone healing taking place, the injury heals with a fibrocartilagenous bridge, at least to some extent, which generally suffices, but appears on x-ray as a gap, as the fibrocartilage is less radio-opaque than bone. This suggested description is neither intended nor should it be taken as a definitive diagnosis in your individual case, as my comments are always of a general nature based on my previous experiences and not on actual facts of the case in question. Accordingly there may be other and more serious problems which may need addressing. But that has to be left to the decision of the attending doctor. Therefore, whether or not it is sufficiently healed or if it will ever be devoid of an apparent gap, I have no way of determining.