We understand that you want to stay active into your 60’s and 70’s, and we don’t blame you. But there’s no doubting that it gets harder and harder to do as we get older. There are a number of things you can do to improve your fitness as you age, like ensuring you eat a healthy diet and get regular exercise, but one thing that often gets overlooked is nipping small issues in the bud.
One area of your body that is prone to small problems that can snowball is your feet. From minor wounds to ingrown toenails and everything in between, your feet absorb a lot of stress and often show the signs of wear and tear after decades of use. One specific area of your feet that we’re going to focus on today is your ankle ligaments and the problem of ankle instability.
Ankle Instability In Older Adults
Your ankles help stabilize your feet with every step you take, and that can take a toll on them as you age. Specifically, your ankle ligaments are responsible for this stabilization, and they are housed on the outside and inside of your ankle joint. The problem occurs when either acute trauma or years of microtrauma damage the connective tissue that make up the ligament. This can leave you prone to ankle sprains.
Some patients find it helpful to imagine that their ankle ligaments are like straws. When you pull a straw out of a pack and stand it up, it’s rigid and stable. Now, if you took that straw and bent it in a few places, then straightened it back out and tried to stand it on its end again, you wouldn’t be able to put much pressure on the straw before it crumpled at a crease.
That’s kind of how your ankle ligaments work. If they are damaged and you don’t either actively work to re-strengthen them through physical therapy or surgery, your ankles are more likely to roll. If this happens while you’re walking down a flight of stairs or while you’re running, you can suffer a sprain or fracture.
Diagnosing and Treating Ankle Instability
So if you’ve noticed that your ankles are rolling more easily, especially if you had previous ankle injuries in the past, consider setting up a visit with foot specialist. They can conduct a bunch of simple noninvasive tests to look for the presence of ankle instability. Balance tests, range of motion exercises and other physical examinations can help a doctor learn more about your ankle ligaments. If there is cause for concern, doctors can look for loose ligaments through imaging tests.
Finally, if it has been determined that your ankle ligaments are loose, there are plenty of treatment techniques to help you restrengthen them. Your doctor can walk you through the specifics of physical therapy. If it turns out you need surgery, a minimally invasive operation can tighten the ligaments and stabilize your ankle. To learn more about the procedure, check out this video Dr. Silverman created to explain the operation.