Quick reference sheets are designed to provide you with surface level information on a given topic. These reference sheets will cover some of the basic topics surrounding a health condition, like Causes, Symptoms, Diagnosis, Treatment and similar subjects.
Ankle Fractures
Causes – Ankle fractures can occur in a number of different ways, but they typically involve acute trauma or a severe twisting to the foot. Athletic activity, car accidents and falls from a great height are all common ways in which people break their ankle. The actual mechanism of injury involves a fracture to one of three different bones in your ankle – the tibia (the larger of the two bones in the lower leg), the fibula (the smaller of the two bones in your lower leg) and the talus, which is a wedge-shaped bone between your heel bone and the ends of the tibia and fibula.
Symptoms – Symptoms of a fractured ankle include:
- Moderate to severe pain
- Swelling
- Tenderness
- Inability or difficulty bearing weight
- Visible ankle deformity
- A cracking sound at the moment of injury
Diagnosis – You may have a pretty good idea that you fractured your ankle based on the circumstances and your symptoms, but because there are a number of bones in your ankle, you’re going to want to get a diagnosis from a medical professional like Dr. Silverman. During the diagnostic process, Dr. Silverman will ask about your symptoms, the incident that led to your injury, and what type of movements or actions cause pain. From there, he’ll conduct a physical exam and may perform some manipulation exercises to see what actions cause symptoms or relief. Finally, he’ll confirm his suspicions with an imaging exam like an X-ray, MRI or CT scan. This will show him exactly where the fracture occurred, and how to best treat it.
Treatment – Treatment for a fractured ankle varies based on the location and severity of the fracture. For some patients, their fracture will heal just fine without surgery. Conservative care recovery takes anywhere from 6-12 weeks, with some of that time spent in a walking boot or another immobilization device. If you suffer a severe or open fracture, surgery is likely in the cards. Surgery may actually lead to a shorter overall recovery time, but surgeons don’t typically like to operate if conservative care can provide full healing. The goal of surgery is to stabilize the fracture site to promote healthy bone healing. Total recovery time following surgery is anywhere form 8-12 weeks.
For more information about ankle fractures, reach out to Dr. Silverman’s office today.