WHAT IS ANKLE SPRAIN? FIND OUT HOW TO TREAT IT!

You know that sharp pain, that happens after an ankle sprain? An ankle sprain is a sudden movement, which leads to a strain or tear of ligaments in a joint. This type of sprain is the most common injury in the universe of musculoskeletal pathology.

The ankle is the joint between the foot and the leg and is made up of 3 bones: tibia, fibula, and talus. Patients tend to disregard these injuries, which can cause local symptoms and even permanent sequelae.

Ankle sprain is a common cause in young adults (ages 15 to 35) and athletes. According to physiotherapy doctor in Dwarka, ankle sprain is one of the most frequent diseases in orthopedic emergencies. It occurs most frequently in soccer, basketball, volleyball and athletes, accounting for about 10% to 15% of all sports injuries.

In an ankle sprain, the anatomical structures of the joint are usually affected, such as muscles, tendons and, in more severe cases, bones and cartilage, which can progress to ligament complications.

In a normal state, the ligaments, which are elastic structures, stretch to their limit, then return to their initial position. Ligaments have a specific range of motion that allow joint stability.

Ligaments are made up of whitish fibrous connective tissue (contains collagen) and have the function of joining two or more bones, protecting, and stabilizing the body’s joints and acting as shock absorbers.

In this text we will present everything you need to know about an ankle sprain, the main causes, its symptoms and the most appropriate form of treatment with promising results. Keep reading!

Classification of Ligament Injuries

Depending on how affected the ligament is and the degree of damage, an ankle sprain can range from mild to severe. Pain and swelling are common; however, it is possible to walk with little pain. In a more severe sprain, tenderness and bruising around the ankle may occur, causing difficulty in walking.

Grade I (mild): ligament strain occurs. Generally, the patient should feel improvement after three days, with asymptomatic or little tissue pain.

Grade II (moderate): partial tear with mild laxity and moderate pain, instability, swelling, and tenderness.

Grade III (severe): complete rupture, severe pain, with local swelling, significant laxity and, most of the time, the joint is unstable.

How an Ankle Injury Occurs

In ankle injuries, there is an accidental inversion of the foot with plantar flexion, especially when stepping on an irregular step or surface, using unstable shoes, such as high heels or even falling from one’s own height.

This anomalous movement causes an injury that starts in the anterior talofibular ligament, and can progress to an injury to the calcaneofibular ligament, with the increase in the energy of the trauma.

Signs and Symptoms of Ankle Sprain

In ankle sprain, pain occurs in the foot, from mild to very severe.

Usually, the ankle immediately begins to swell, and ecchymosis and joint effusion may develop in the area of ​​swelling. The pain increases with movement and is tender to the touch.

The more severe the injury, the more visible the signs.

What are the main causes of Ankle Sprain?

There are many causes, and some factors may involve the appearance of the lesion, such as:

• sudden movements with the feet;
• Wearing inappropriate footwear, such as very high heels;
• Carrying out physical activity without preparation;
• loose ligaments;
• Walking on uneven ground;
• Weak muscles;
• Nerve injuries;
• Previous injuries.

Diagnosis

The orthopedic professional usually performs the medical diagnosis of ankle sprain, as it is the most suitable to deliver the result and carry out a reliable analysis of the injury, through the patient’s clinical history, complementary exams that help in the exact and precise diagnosis of the injury.

Some of them are:

• X-ray: allows the orthopaedic doctor in Delhi to obtain images with details of the region where the injury occurred, helping the specialist to exclude the possibility of a fracture in any bone of the foot or located in the ankle itself, thus allowing an assertive and complete diagnosis;
• Magnetic Resonance Imaging: the specialist requests it when there is a more serious injury, which involves fractures in the articular bone;
• Ultrasonography: allows observation of the ankle ligament while moving it, making it possible to visualize details of the joint injury;
• Tomography: useful for a better assessment of the fracture pattern.

Types of Treatment for Ankle Sprains

Physiotherapy in Dwarka is the most effective method of treatment for sprains, especially when it comes to proprioceptive re-education, as it will prevent instability and new fractures.

Treatment can be either conservative or surgical. The choice depends on the severity of the injury. Conservative treatment will depend on the type and severity of the trauma.

The conservative protocol follows:

• Rest: Do not support with the fractured limb;
• Ice: Place on the injury site for 15 minutes every 2 hours for the first few days;
• Compression: Bandages or elastic stockings help control edema;
• Elevation: Keep the affected limb at heart level;
• Immobilization: Immobilizing boot or plastered splint always in the initial care;
• Medications: To control swelling and relieve pain in the first few days of trauma, such as anti-inflammatories and analgesics.

In the minority of cases, the treatment is surgical. However, depending on the type of fracture, more than one surgical intervention, called ligament repair, may be required.

When surgery is performed in the chronic phase, with patients with a history of repeated sprains, it is usually performed by fixing the injured ankle ligament to the bones, using implants such as anchors, which can be metallic or made of bioabsorbable material.

Conclusion

It is noted that from the articles studied there are different types of treatment for ankle injuries , such as the use of splints, immobilization with functional orthosis, elastic bandage, and others. The intervention criterion after an ankle sprain can be chosen according to the time of the event.

It is likely that there is an understanding in the literature when selecting the best practices for the treatment of injuries in the region, an understanding that assesses that the faster the choice of treatment type, the faster the patient’s recovery, says the best physiotherapist in Dwarka.

Muscle stretching: What to do when you suffer from the classic 'pull'

Muscle injuries are the most common type of injury in an athlete. In this article we want to focus on muscle elongation or muscle pull, the mildest muscle type injury, a priori.

Muscle strain is the famous “pull”. As Dr Sarwar, physiotherapist in Delhi, explains, it occurs when the muscle is stretched “beyond its possibilities”. It is usually considered the previous step to a muscle rupture and is considered a minor injury. "It is the most benign of muscle injuries," says Dr Sarwar, physiotherapy doctor in Delhi.

What is muscle stretching

Elongation occurs as a result of eccentric muscle contraction at the two ends of the muscle. It normally occurs in polyarticular muscles, such as the quadriceps and hamstrings. The fundamental difference with the break is that in the elongation the fiber does not break, or a minimal break occurs. “The rupture produces a hematoma, which takes longer to reabsorb and always leaves a scar, larger or smaller”, explains the physiotherapist in Dwarka. In contrast, stretching does not leave a scar, so the muscle does not lose functionality.

"It always occurs as a function of muscular overloads and imbalances ", illustrates the doctor. There are very characteristic examples. For example, in a short race: the explosive contraction of the quadriceps can produce an excessive lengthening of the hamstring. In soccer players it can occur when hitting the ball with force, which produces a sudden stretching of the posterior thigh muscles.

The sport most affected by muscle strain or pull is precisely football. "It generally occurs in the hamstring," explains the best physiotherapist in Dwarka, "followed by the rectus femoris, the adductors, and the twins."

When does a pulled muscle occur?

The elongation has several characteristics:

• It occurs as a consequence of physical activity. It does not appear at rest but is the consequence of an eccentric contraction that is a little stronger than usual.
• It usually appears when the muscles have not been properly warmed up.
• Sometimes it occurs when explosive work is required of a previously excessively fatigued muscle. It is more frequent in the first phase of the season, when few training sessions have been carried out, or at the end, when fatigue accumulates.
• External factors may influence. The case of excessive heat, humidity, a change in food or hydration defects do not help.

Symptoms of muscle strain are mild. The pain is usually diffuse, so that it is difficult to locate the exact point. Unlike a muscle tear, which usually generates rapid functional impotence, elongation can allow practicing sports, although with less intensity. "You can tell that something has happened, and sometimes it is not distinguishable from an overload because it is not excessively painful," Dr Sarwar abounds.

How to prevent muscle strains

Elongation is a type of injury that can be largely prevented, as long as some basic guidelines are taken into account:

• Perform eccentric muscular work. "In any muscle injury, eccentric strengthening work is important, which improves flexibility and contraction capacity," says Albaladejo.
• Pay attention to muscle rebalancing. Dr. Sarwar comments that it is common to find athletes with the quadriceps and little hamstring, and vice versa. "This ratio is very important to have balanced," physiotherapy doctor in Dwarka warns.
• Do a good job of dynamic stretching in the warm-up phase. This will serve to increase your body temperature and your muscles' range of motion. Recent studies seem to indicate that stretching prior to exertion weakens the muscles and exposes them more to injury, as we explain in this article. For this reason, stretching should be accompanied by a movement that warms up the muscles.
• Good hydration and a good diet. Low hydration hinders the transport of minerals, through which the brain sends electrical impulses that muscle cells transform into movement. Dehydration can cause muscle spasms, and these lead to the dreaded cramps or elongation of the fibers.
• Avoid overtraining. Especially if you are returning to sports activity after a long period. Overtraining is reflected in muscle pain because the muscles need rest to recover and regenerate. Contractures, pulls or cramps can be related to excess. It can also cause muscle tears or tendinopathies.

What to do when you have a pulled muscle

Despite the apparent lightness of the muscle strain, it is advisable to stop practicing sports for a few days.

The treatment can be carried out in two phases:

• The first two or three days it is convenient to control the inflammation by applying ice, in several daily sessions of twenty to thirty minutes. "Studies agree that in the first three days what you have to do is rest, ice, elevation and compression," says the physiotherapist in Delhi. In this way, the bleeding of the possible microtear is limited, which will reduce the scar.
• As soon as the pain allows it, generally after the third day, you can move on to an activation phase. The goal is "to activate the circulation, begin to vascularize and work on strengthening with a smooth and controlled progression," says Dr Sarwar. Isometric contraction can also be worked on. That is, the contraction of the muscle without altering its length.

"Properly diagnosed, it should not take more than ten days to return to normal activity," concludes the physiotherapist in Dwarka.

Role of Physiotherapy After Hip Surgery

The number of joint replacement in Delhi such as the hip or knee has grown exponentially and widespread in recent times, and this trend is expected to continue. The progressive aging of an increasingly long-lived population is undoubtedly one of the main causes of this new reality.

In India there are thousands of new cases each year, as a result of degenerative diseases such as osteoarthritis - the most common - osteoporosis or rheumatoid arthritis, among others. Therefore, the most common age range of this type of intervention is usually around 50-80 years. In this sense, falls, direct cause of hip fractures in elderly people, receive special attention. According to data, 30% of people over 65 and 50% of those over 80, suffer some type of mishap of these characteristics once a year.

The effectiveness of the method guarantees a higher quality of life for those who suffer from this type of affection, slowing down the inherent chronic pain and the daily limitations that these produces.

The hip joint is one of the largest structures in the body. This is surrounded by soft tissues of great importance that complete it and that must be considered. The intervention may be partial or total, depending on factors such as age, although the latter is the most common.

Once the operation of hip replacement in Delhi is done, the patient will usually need between 3 and 6 months to recover; recovery in which the best physiotherapy in Delhi will intervene decisively.

The role of physiotherapy

When facing rehabilitation after an operation of these characteristics it is important not to neglect the time. Therefore, the first contact with the patient should be made, if possible, prior to the operation. This will help us to generate confidence and inform the patient of the procedure, assimilating the rehabilitation guidelines that will be followed immediately after the intervention, and the precautions that should be considered.

In this first contact, it is essential to assess your general condition, both physically and psychically, to establish a treatment as personalized as possible.

Early therapy by the best physiotherapist in Delhi will not only promote toning and strengthening of the muscles, but also help to limit pain. At this time, it is crucial, in turn, to apply respiratory physiotherapy techniques to avoid further complications that can lead to pneumonias.

The top physiotherapist in Delhi will carry out a plan of activities with active-assisted mobilizations and strengthening exercises by means of controlled flexion of the operated limb, among others, and will apply massages on the leg and buttocks, as well as on the area of ​​the scar, to restore well-being of the structure and prepare the patient for the next step: stand up. It is important to start the process slowly, sitting on the edge of the bed, and trying to keep the leg involved always stretched. It will help to achieve this goal of the healthy leg and arms, as well as the best physiotherapy doctor in Delhi, who will assist the movement on the first occasions.

The patient will have an active role at all times, also after discharge. At home you should continue the exercises and care started in the hospital. Activities such as sitting on a chair, stretching the leg and placing on the tips of the feet, among others, and following certain guidelines given by home physiotherapist in Delhi when using the walker or crutch will be essential to improve the response and reduce the Recovery time.