If you sprain your ankle, the first line of treatment is PRICE.
PRICE Treatment
An ankle sprain typically happens when your foot rolls to the inside or outside when stepping. In most cases, the ankle will roll to the outside/foot rolls in causing what is called an inversion sprain. In this case the muscles and ligaments on the outside of the ankle get stretched or even torn. When the foot rolls out and ankle rolls in it is caused an eversion sprain where the structures on the inside of the ankle get injured.
To learn more about the Anatomy of the Ankle, please watch this video.
When you roll or sprain your ankle, the ligaments and muscles get stretched out or even torn from this abnormal movement. You will likely experience the following symptoms with this type of injury
Treating a sprained ankle
In addition to the treatments above, you may want to use an oral, over-the-counter anti-inflammatory for both pain relief and to help decrease the swelling in the area. Consult your physician or a pharmacist for appropriate medication.
Most of the time, you can stand and take a few steps on a sprained ankle. If your ankle is fractured or broken, you usually cannot stand on the injured foot and ankle. This is part of a set of diagnostic guidelines known as the Ottawa Ankle Rules.
There is more to the diagnosis than this though. The best way to determine whether you have an ankle sprain vs. broken ankle is with an X-ray.
Sprained ankles and broken ankles both have swelling, discoloration, and pain.
Illustration of an Ankle Sprain
Low Ankle Sprain is a tear in the ligaments of the outside of the ankle. This typically happens with an inversion sprain.
High Ankle Sprain happens when the foot is forcefully flexed upward and the 2 bones of the lower leg are forced apart. The tissue between the tibia and fibula (syndesmosis) is stretched or torn.
How to treat a sprained ankle depends on the severity of the ankle sprain. The symptoms may stay up to 1-2 weeks but should get better over time.
If your symptoms are not improving it is important to seek medical attention from a physician to make sure there are not any other structures in the ankle that have been damaged. An X-ray might be necessary to help to know how to treat a sprained ankle.
After the initial healing of the injury, it is important to start regaining your ROM, flexibility, and strength. Below are a few exercises to help with these limitations.
Physical therapy on ankle
Before you get back to your normal activities or even sports, it is important to make sure you have strengthened your ankle to avoid any further injuries! If you think ankle rehabilitation may be necessary, schedule an appointment with JOI physical therapy. It is important to stay on the safe side
Related Injuries
If your symptoms were similar to the ones listed above but you think you may have a different condition, read the following related articles:
When treating patients for ankle pain, JOI Rehab clinicians will commonly focus on range-of-motion with active and passive mobility exercises. Another form of therapy is strength training. This will help with stability of the ankle. Balance position sense is another key factor in treating ankle pain and preventing patients from losing their sense of balance due to ankle injuries. Different pairs of shoes may also help with healing ankle pains. Lastly and perhaps most importantly is keeping up with your health. Weight loss and a healthy BMI are always recommended in the treatment of ankle pain.
If you are interested in scheduling an appointment at JOI Rehab for physical therapy, call (904) 858-7045
JOI and JOI Rehab is now offering Telemedicine Appointments and ASAP Fracture and Injury Appointments. Please call 904-JOI-2000 or click below.
