Hi DocDocker. One can only guess as to what is happening with Alex Pearce. We know he sustained an ankle fracture during a relatively innocuous incident in June this year. He was treated by having a plate screwed intro his ankle and being immobilised in a moon boot for the rest of the season. That operation was done at SJOG Subiaco. He has now had a "procedure" done over East.
As far as I can see there are two choices. Either the fracture has not healed or there have been complications of the initial surgery. Given it was only a short stay in hospital, I am guessing the fracture is not healing. I don't know what the most recent procedure was (eg1 removal of the existing metalwork, eg2 replacement of the existing metalwork) but whatever is happening is not optimal. The fact that he has been moved interstate for his second operation suggests a further opinion has been sought on his management. None of this inspires me with confidence, especially when media reports also say how everyone is happy how things are going well. We are not getting an ideal outcome. It is not obvious where the fault lies.
EDIT (10/12/19) - thinking about this a bit more, I now think the most likely explanation is that Alex Pearce sustain two injuries to his ankle. The fracture, which was treated by open reduction and internal fixation and second injury to the ligament/soft tissue structures of the ankle which have now been repaired. It would make sense to do this as a secondary procedure having reassessed the ankle following healing of the fracture. Still unclear as to why it would be done in Melbourne and not in Perth.
