Treating an injured ankle requires that you first look at the symptoms and determine to what extent the injury has happened. Assessing whether it’s a sprain, strain or broken ankle will enable you to administer first-aid to protect the ankle against further injuries until it’s seen by a doctor. Although most ankle injuries are sprains, it’s important that the doctor is given a chance to ascertain this and to help you recover, and provide protective rehabilitation techniques such as bracing and footwear in Las Vegas.
Recovering After an Ankle Treatment
Regardless of the kind of treatment you received, get some rest. Give yourself enough time to recuperate over the next couple of days. The body needs time to recover after going through a traumatic experience. You can take some over-the-counter medication if you’re experiencing a lot of pain after the treatment. Take some painkillers such as Ibuprofen or acetaminophen, or whatever your doctor prescribes.
The first few days should be characterized by short walks inside the house. Use crutches given by your doctor to support yourself. They might be uncomfortable at first, but you’ll eventually get used to them. Unless specifically instructed by the doctor, don’t put pressure on your leg, and if you can, avoid letting it rest on the floor. Disengage from any weight-bearing activities while the ankle is healing unless the doctor instructed you to.
Avoid getting your cast wet, and if you do, contact your physician immediately to get a new one. If water accumulates inside the cast, it can affect your skin and cause an infection to occur. Additionally, a wet cast will get loose and won’t hold the ankle properly. As the ankle gradually recovers, schedule an appointment with a physical therapist so you can start gaining strength in that leg. You’ll need to perform exercises and physical therapy to build ankle flexibility and mobility.
Rehabilitating Your Ankle
Rehabilitation will help your ankle gain strength and improve it’s range of motion. The surgery to set your bones back together is only half the job. Rehabilitation is the other half and is required to help you gain mobility, stability, and function in your ankle. Rehabilitation includes stretching, calf muscle strengthening, mobility exercises, and ankle joint stability. Stability exercises should be done before mobility exercises to reinforce the maximum degree of movement in the area without risking injury. Stability also helps you withstand external pressure applied to the injured leg.
An ankle fracture usually takes about two months to heal, but your physician can allow you to take part in a range of motion movements as early as one month. They may also decide to transition you to a removable boot cast. Keep following up with your doctor so they can evaluate how you’re doing.
Before taking part in any exercises, talk to your physical therapist about it. Ankle joint stability exercises are usually done when the cast is removed, or within a week after surgery. Ankle mobility is important for daily activities such as driving, climbing a flight of stairs or walking. The goal of this exercise is to restore ankle flexibility to normal movement patterns. Ankle mobility exercises are usually a follow up to the ankle joint stability exercises. Perform calf raises, which target the ankle joint ligaments, achilles tendon, and calf muscles. It mimics everyday motion.