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What are the most common ankle injuries?

One particular problem that I see in sportspeople is sprained ankles. These types of injuries tend to happen in athletes who play explosive multidirectional sports such as football, netball, tennis, hockey and rugby.

 

The most common type of ankle sprains that people suffer from our lateral ankle sprains. On the outer side of the ankle there are three major ligaments known as the ATFL, the CFL and the PTFL. There is also another ligament call the AITFL slightly higher joining the tibia and fibula together.

 

Less commonly injured are the ligaments on the inside of the ankle. There are a number of different ligaments on the inside of the ankle collectively termed the deltoid ligament.

 

Ligament sprains can be classified on a grading scale of grade 1 to grade 3. A grade 1 ligament sprain is a minor sprain with only a small amount of ligaments damage, a great two is a more moderate sprain with significant amount of damage, and a grade 3 sprain can be an almost or complete rupture of the ligament.

 

Grade 1 and grade 2 ligament sprains respond well to physiotherapy and take anywhere from 3 to 6 weeks to resolve. However the ankle joint can still feel quite sore for a number of months after an ankle sprain, even though you are back to your sport. I remember spraining my ankle February 2013 and it was still a bit achy and stiff first thing in the morning and a bit sore if I tried to dash across the road even 3 to 4 months after I originally injured it.

Physiotherapy for ankle sprain

Your physiotherapy treatment may consist of soft tissue massage, instrument assisted soft tissue mobilisation of the ligaments, ultrasound, exercises such as strengthening and proprioception. In most cases you will make a full recovery from your ankle sprain and be back to sport in just a few short months.

About Wandsworth Physiotherapy

infoAt Wandsworth Physiotherapy and Osteopathy we are focused on getting you out of pain and back to what you love doing. Whether it's playing with your kids or simply being able to sit on the train comfortably; whether it's being able to get back into the gym class or to run 5k again; whether it's to banish the Tena Lady or being able to lift your child without pain our expert physiotherapists and osteopaths are here to help.