Sprained Your Ankle? Physio can help you return to sport quicker and safer!
The Rolled Ankle
This is the most common type of ankle injury out there! It occurs when the ankle rolls inward, damaging the lateral ligaments on the outer side of the ankle. This injury is often associated with sports activities that involve sudden changes in direction or jumping, but it can also occur during everyday activities such as walking on uneven surfaces or down stairs on a Saturday night at the Manly Corso.
Symptoms of an ankle inversion injury include pain, swelling, bruising, stiffness, and difficulty bearing weight on the affected ankle. If left untreated or managed improperly, lateral ligament injury can lead to chronic ankle instability or recurrent sprains.
A rolled ankle will often injure the lateral ligaments and is the most common type of ankle injury in sport.
Physio Following Ankle Sprain Can Help Recover Faster!
Occasionally, other structures are also injured when you roll your ankle. This can include bones like the fibular, with avulsion fractures being common, especially in younger people. An avulsion fracture is where the ligament pulls off a bit of bone rather than tearing. Other bones like the talus and 5th metatarsal can also be injured in lateral ankle injury (LAI). This highlights the importance of accurate assessment and diagnosis early after your injury so that management can be directed at the right structures!
Fortunately, Sports physiotherapy can help assess, diagnose and treat your ankle injury to offer pain relief and a speedier recovery. Here's how:
1. Assessment and Diagnosis
A physiotherapist can assess and diagnose the severity of your LAI through a physical examination, ligament tests, and imaging such as X-rays or MRI scans. This will help determine the best course of treatment for your specific ankle injury.
2. Pain Management
Physio can also help alleviate pain associated with ankle ligament injury through various techniques such as cold therapy, massage, dry needling, mobilisation and taping. These treatments will help reduce inflammation and promote healing.
3. Strength and Stability Exercises
Ankle rehab exercises are a key component of any ankle recovery. Your physiotherapist will design a customised exercise program that includes mobility, strengthening, motor control, balance and sports-specific movement exercises to restore function and prevent recurrence.
4. Manual Therapy
Manual therapy techniques such as joint mobilization, soft tissue massage, and dry needling can help restore range of motion and promote healing of damaged tissues.
5. Booting, Bracing or Taping
In some cases, a boot, ankle brace or taping may be helpful to provide initial relief, weight bearing protection and extra stability to support the early healing process and aid in your recovery. Your physiotherapist can recommend the appropriate option for your specific condition.
Overall, early physiotherapy plays a crucial role in the management and recovery of ankle inversion injury. By addressing pain, restoring function, and promoting healing, physiotherapy can help you get back to your active lifestyle, sport or gym routine as quickly and safely as possible!
If you've rolled your ankle and want high level care, contact us today to schedule a consultation with our experienced physiotherapists. We'll make it our mission to get you back to what you want to do with a plan that meets your needs and helps you achieve your goals.
