Description

A sprained ankle is an injury that occurs when you roll, twist or turn your ankle in an awkward way. This can stretch or tear the tough bands of tissue (ligaments) that help hold your ankle bones together.

Ligaments help stabilize joints, preventing excessive movement. An ankle sprain occurs when the ligaments are forced beyond their normal range of motion. Most sprained ankles involve injuries to the ligaments on the outside of the ankle.

The treatment for a sprained ankle depends on the severity of the injury. Although measures of self-care and over-the-counter pain medications may be all you need, a medical evaluation may be necessary to reveal how badly you've twisted your ankle and to determine the appropriate treatment.

Symptoms

The signs and symptoms of an ankle sprain vary depending on the severity of the injury. They may include:

  • The pain, especially when you bear weight on the affected foot
  • Sensitivity to touch the ankle
  • Swelling
  • Bruising
  • Restricted range of motion
  • The instability in the ankle
  • Popping sensation or sound at the time of the injury

When to see a doctor

Call your doctor if you have pain and swelling in the ankle and the suspicion of a sprain. Self-care measures may be all you need, but talk to your doctor about whether you should have your ankle evaluated. If signs and symptoms are severe, there may be significant damage to a ligament or a broken bone in the ankle or lower leg.

Causes

A sprain occurs when the ankle is forced to move out of its normal position, which can cause one or more of the ligaments of the ankle to stretch, partial tear or complete tear.

Cause of an ankle sprain may include:

  • A fall that causes your ankle to twist
  • Landing awkwardly on the foot after a jump or spin
  • Walking or exercising on an uneven surface
  • Of another person or of step-by-step landing on the foot during a sports activity

Risk factors

Factors that increase your risk of an ankle sprain are:

  • Sports participation. Ankle sprains are sports injuries, especially in sports that require jumping, cutting action, or rolling or twisting of the foot, such as a basketball, tennis, football, soccer, and trail running.
  • The uneven surfaces. Walking or running on uneven surfaces or in poor field conditions may increase the risk of a sprained ankle.
  • Before the ankle injury. Once you've sprained your ankle, or had another type of ankle injury, you're more likely to sprain it again.
  • Poor physical condition. Low strength or flexibility in the ankles may increase the risk of a sprain when participating in sports.
  • Improper shoes. Shoes that don't fit properly or are not suitable for the activity, as well as high-heeled shoes in general, ankles more vulnerable to injury.

Complications

Do not treat a sprained ankle, participation in activities too soon after an ankle sprain or sprain their ankle repeatedly can lead to the following complications:

  • Chronic ankle pain
  • Chronic ankle joint instability
  • Arthritis in the ankle joint

Prevention

The following tips can help prevent an ankle sprain or a strain recurring:

  • Warming up before exercising or playing sports.
  • Please be careful when walking, jogging or working on an uneven surface.
  • The use of an ankle support brace or tape in a weak or injured ankle.
  • Wear shoes that fit well and are made for your activity.
  • Minimize wearing high-heeled shoes.
  • Not play sports or participate in activities for which they are conditioned.
  • Maintain good muscle strength and flexibility.
  • The practical stability of training, including balance exercises.

Diagnosis

During a physical exam, your doctor will examine your ankle, foot and lower leg. The doctor will touch the skin around the injury to check for points of tenderness and move your foot to check the range of motion and to understand what positions cause discomfort or pain.

If the injury is severe, your doctor may recommend one or more of the following imaging tests to rule out a broken bone or to evaluate in more detail the extent of ligament damage:

  • X-ray. During an x-ray, a small amount of radiation passes through your body to produce images of the bones of the ankle. This test is a good test to rule out bone fractures.
  • Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Mri's use of radio waves and a powerful magnetic field to produce cross-sectional or 3-D images of soft internal structures of the ankle joint, including the ligaments.
  • CTscan. The ct scan can reveal more details about the bones of the joint. CT scans take X-rays from different angles and combine them to make cross-sectional or 3-D images.
  • Ultrasound. An ultrasound uses sound waves to produce images in real-time. These images can help your doctor judge the condition of a ligament or tendon when the foot is in different positions.

Treatment

The treatment for a sprained ankle depends on the severity of your injury. The goals of treatment are to reduce pain and swelling, promote healing of the ligaments, and to restore the function of the ankle joint. For severe injuries, you may be referred to a specialist in musculoskeletal injuries, such as an orthopedic surgeon or a physician specializing in physical medicine and rehabilitation.

Self-care

For the self-care of a sprained ankle, the use of the R. I. C. E. approach for the first two or three days:

  • Rest. Avoid activities that cause pain, swelling or discomfort.
  • Of ice. Use an ice pack or ice bath immediately for 15 to 20 minutes and repeat every two to three hours while you are awake. If you have vascular disease, diabetes or decreased sensation, talk with your doctor before applying ice.
  • Compression. To help stop swelling, compress the ankle with an elastic bandage until the swelling stops. Does not hinder the circulation by a really tight fit. Begin wrapping at the end furthest away from your heart.
  • Elevation. To reduce swelling, elevate the ankle above the level of the heart, especially at night. Gravity helps to reduce swelling by draining excess fluid.

Drugs

In most cases, over-the-counter painkillers — such as ibuprofen (Advil, Motrin IB, others) or naproxen sodium (Aleve, others) or acetaminophen (Tylenol, others) — are sufficient to control the pain of a sprained ankle.

Devices

Because walking with a sprained ankle can be painful, you may need to use crutches until the pain subsides. Depending on the severity of the sprain, your doctor may recommend an elastic bandage, sports tape or an ankle support brace to stabilize the ankle. In the case of a severe sprain, a cast or walking boot may be necessary to immobilize the ankle while it heals.

Therapy

Once the swelling and the pain is reduced enough to resume the movement, your doctor will ask you questions to begin a series of exercises to restore your ankle's range of motion, strength, flexibility, and stability. Your doctor or a physical therapist will explain the appropriate method, and the progression of the exercises.

Balance and stability training is especially important to retrain the ankle muscles to work together to support the joint and helps to prevent sprains recurring. These exercises may involve varying degrees of balance challenge, such as standing on one leg.

If you sprained your ankle while exercising or participating in a sport, talk to your doctor about when you can resume your activity. Your doctor or physical therapist may want you to perform the particular activity, and the movement tests to determine how well your ankle functions of the sports that are played.

Surgery

In rare cases, surgery is performed when the lesion does not heal or the ankle remains unstable after a long period of physical therapy and exercise rehabilitation. The surgery can be performed to:

  • To repair a ligament that do not heal
  • To reconstruct a ligament with the tissue in the vicinity of a ligament or tendon

Preparing for your appointment

Schedule an appointment or to obtain emergency medical care for suspected sprains that do not respond to self-care strategies, or they may cause pain or instability. If the sprain is severe, you may be referred to a doctor who specializes in sports medicine or orthopedic surgery.

What you can do

You can write a list that includes the following:

  • Detailed descriptions of its symptoms
  • The information about the medical problems you have had, especially recent ankle injury
  • All of the medications and supplements you take
  • Questions you want to ask the doctor

What to expect from your doctor

Your doctor may ask some of the following questions:

  • How did the injury occur?
  • The direction in which he made his walk when you get hurt?
  • Can bear weight on the foot?
  • What self-care treatment have you used?
  • What effect did the treatment?
  • Have you injured your ankle before?
  • How was that injury treated?
Symptoms and treatment of ankle Sprain