Ankle sprain which ligaments

Intensive physiotherapy and foot training will only be beneficial after your symptoms have subsided. You should then be putting more weight on your foot in stages. With some of the finest specialists in foot and ankle conditions at Schoen Clinic, you are sure to find your feet in the best hands possible. Our multidisciplinary team approach combines the expertise of surgeons, physiotherapists and nurses to provide you with the optimum result, no matter what your condition may be.

Contact us Read more Directions. Breadcrumb site navigation Treatment offers Ankle ligament injuries. Ankle Ligament Injuries. Making Your Foot Stable Again A ligament tear or rupture in the ankle joint is one of the most common sports injuries. Symptoms Treatment Aftercare Specialists Locations. The Ankle Joint — How is it Structured? Symptoms: Signs of a ligament rupture of the ankle joint. After your ankle rolls, a sudden shooting pain typically occurs.

Some report a crunching or cracking noise. The first signs of a ligament tear are severe swelling and bruising. In a low ankle sprain, the bruise can track into the foot and the toes.

A large swelling can appear on the outer side of your ankle. You will often no longer be able to put your full weight on the foot because of the pain. Sometimes, a feeling of instability can also arise. Initial measures for a suspected ligament tear. To prevent further injury, it is best to follow the RICE method: R est: stop putting weight on the joint as quickly as possible.

I ce: cool the affected area to combat swelling and inflammation of the joint. C ompression and E levation: apply a compression bandage and keep your leg raised. The ligaments of the syndesmosis serve as shock absorbers, preventing the tibia and fibula from spreading too far apart. When you run, and especially when you run and quickly change direction, these ligaments of the syndesmosis experience very high forces.

A high ankle sprain is caused by an inversion or dorsiflexion trauma to the syndesmosis, usually resulting from a sudden twisting, turning or cutting motion while a person is running or jumping. They are most common in athletes who play high-impact running sports like football, soccer, basketball and lacrosse. Unfortunately, there is no high ankle sprain brace that has been shown to prevent these injuries.

The best way to avoid this injury is continual performance training for strength and flexibility, including appropriate stretching exercises especially just prior to playing sports. You will typically feel pain that radiates up your leg from the ankle.

Each step you take may be quite painful, and the pain is usually even worse if you move your foot in the same way as when the injury occurred. For example, if you sprained syndesmosis ligaments by running and then quickly turning left using your right foot, repeating that motion later will be very painful.

High ankle sprains do not typically cause a great degree of swelling or bruising. Your doctor will ask you what motion you were performing when your injury took place, assess your symptoms, and conduct a physical exam. The exam may include a fibular compression test also sometimes called a "high ankle sprain test" or "syndesmosis squeeze test". For this test, your doctor will place hands on each side of your lower leg and squeeze the tibia and fibula together in a few different spots.

If this causes pain that radiates down your leg, this suggests a high ankle sprain. Sports requiring jumping, turning and twisting movements such as basketball, volleyball, netball and football; and explosive changes of direction such as soccer, tennis and hockey are particularly vulnerable to ankle sprains. The ankle joint is a hinge joint formed between the tibia and fibula bones of the lower leg and the talus a bone of the foot and allows the foot to bend upwards dorsiflexion and downwards plantarflexion.

The joint also allows a small amount of rotation. Ligaments provide stability by preventing the amount of side to side movement. On the inside of the ankle medial side , the joint is stabilised by a thick, strong fibrous ligament called the deltoid ligament.

On the outside of the ankle lateral side , the joint is stabilised by three smaller ligaments; the anterior talofibular at the front , the calcaneofibular at the side and the posterior talofibular at the back.

The most commonly injured ligament is the anterior talofibular. Injury to this ligament results in swelling and pain on the outside of the ankle. If the force is more severe, the calcaneofibular ligament is also damaged. The posterior talofibular ligament is less likely to be damaged. A complete tear of all ligaments may result in a dislocation of the ankle joint and an accompanying fracture.

Sprained ankle Open pop-up dialog box Close. Sprained ankle A sprained ankle is the stretching or tearing of ankle ligaments, which support the joint by connecting bones to each other. More Information Ankle sprain.

Share on: Facebook Twitter. Show references Sprained ankle. American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons. Accessed May 25, Maughan KL.

Ankle sprain. Kaminski TW, et al. National Athletic Trainers' Association position statement: Conservative management and prevention of ankle sprains in athletes.