Ankle Sprain
A sprained ankle is the stretching or tearing of ankle ligaments, which support the joint by connecting bones to each other. This occurs when you twist, roll or awkwardly turn your ankle on unstable grounds. They range from mild to severe, depending upon how much damage there is to the ligament. In extreme cases fractures or avulsion fractures can occur.
The role of the ligaments around the ankle is to attach bone to bone and passively constrict the range of motion available.
The ligaments involved in the three different types of ankle sprain are:
Lateral Sprain (most common)
Anterior talofibular ligament (ATFL).
Calcaneofibular ligament (CFL).
Posterior talofibular ligament (PTFL).
Medial Sprain
Deltoid Ligament.
Anterior tibiotalar ligament (ATTL.
Posterior deep tibiotalar ligament (PDTL).
Tibiocalcaneal ligament.
Tibionavicular ligament.
Posterior superficial tibiotalar ligament.
Tibiospring ligament.
High Sprain
Inferior tibiofibular ligament.
Distal tibiofibular syndesmosis.
Symptoms
A sprained ankle is painful straight after the incident. Some common symptoms also associated are:
- Bruising.
- Swelling.
- Stiffness.
- Tender to palpate.
- Inability to bear weight.
- Instability of the ankle, with serve cases (full rupture of ligaments)
It is very important to complete a full rehabilitation program, because your risk to re-injury increases 40-70% with no post- injury rehabilitation.
Treatment
It is very important to come and see a health professional to assist with the rehabilitation, however at a very basic level these are the three phases:
Phase 1
P.O.L.I.C.E – Protection, Optimal Loading, Ice, Compression and Elevation. The resting or de-loading phase of an injury should be restricted to short periods immediately after the trauma, roughly the first 24 hours.
Phase 2
Optimal loading, Range of Motion and Strength. Your podiatrist will be able to gently manipulate and mobilise your ankle while instructing you through the early rehabilitation exercises. Optimal loading is targeted to facilitate healing and regenerate damaged tissue. Having an experienced podiatrist to assist you to find the right balance between underloading and overloading is key.
Phase 3
Implementation of proprioception training with straight- line movement followed later by endurance and agility exercises.