Ankle Sprains

General Description:

Sprain is said to be that injury in the ankle of a person which occurs due to the ligaments stretching or if they are torn off.

Generally health professionals describe ankle sprain as the ligaments surrounding the ankle being forced to position in an abnormal manner which is different from the natural position.

 ANKLE SPRAINS

Ankle Sprain can happen to anyone. This is most commonly found in athletes and sportspersons.

It is seen that during any exercise or during any sport, if the foot of a person goes to an unusual position that is which is different from the natural one, it results in sprain.

It is also found that people wearing heels also face this kind of problem very often as their foot sometimes is been kept or due to any obstruction in the path, its normal position changes. From a recent study it was found that around 26000 people suffer from strains everyday.

Type of injury:

  • First grade ankle sprain : These type of sprains occur due to slight stretching which in turn affects the ligaments. In this there is a little swelling with pains. The treatment which should be followed in this is weight bearing, and also full length stretching exercises as could be tolerated by that person.
  • Second grade ankle sprain : These types of sprains occur due to some partial tearing of ligaments of the ankle. This type of sprain generally inhibits due to laxity that is abnormal looseness of ankle joint. In this there is swelling and the movement of ankle is slightly decreases. In this certain treatments can be given such as physical therapy or stretching exercises will also do well.
  • Third grade ankle sprain : These types of sprains occur due to complete tear of ligaments that is the ligaments in this case are not slightly damaged but are totally torn off. In this case the impairment is severe. People suffering from these types of injuries are given physical treatment but for considerable longer time period.

Prevention:

Certain preventive measures can be taken to avoid ankle sprains.

  • Athletes and sportspersons should take care that before going into very hard or vigorous exercises, they should properly warm up such that there is a lesser strain to the ankle ligaments.
  • People should take proper care while walking. Sometimes people don’t care walking or running on uneven surfaces, which could at times result in these types of sprains.
  • Avoid wearing high heeled shoes, and go or definitely good quality shoes.
  • Take proper care of the warning given by one’s body of fatigue and pain. In case of severe pain or swelling, go for proper treatment.
  • Analyze the type of sprain that is whether the sprain is acute or chronic. If the sprain occurs repeatedly that is if even after healing a little bit, it happens again and again then the sprain is chronic. In this type of case stop any type of hard activity. In case this happens to an athlete then any type of hard activities or any type of exercise should be reduced to avoid further complications.
  • In either case whether it is an acute or a chronic sprain, proper mild exercises should be carried out regularly.
  • In severe case of swelling and in case the ligaments are torn off, the person should start wear ankle braces.
  • Balancing is a major problem in case of acute or chronic sprains. Balance tests should be carried out as far as possible.

Treatment :

Ankle Sprains should not be taken carelessly. In rare cases it is seen that is these sprains are not taken carefully then at times a surgical treatment could be the last option if in case there is least effect of other treatments.

The surgical treatment includes the following:

  • Arthroscopy: In this the specialist looks for the torn off ligaments and gives the necessary treatment.
  • Reconstruction: In severe cases when the ligaments do not heal over certain period of time, the surgeon gives the treatment by stitching the torn off ligaments in rare cases.

Recovery of ankle sprains :

Generally ankle sprains recover with time.

  • Firstly the patient should rest and should not over work. This would probably help in reducing swelling and other complications if any.
  • Secondly with the help of certain mild exercises and slow movements help in recovering faster.
  • Thirdly while returning to the normal routine activities proper care should be taken to avoid any further problem and complications.