Sprained Ankle Question

[Julia M]

okay, I have kind of a dumb question for anyone who cn help me.

I sprained my ankle on Sept. 26. It was pretty twisted, to the point that within a few hours, it was swollen, and I couldn't bear weight on it. I went to urgent care, and they took three X-rays. The doc felt it wasn't fractured, one xray looked like it might have been, but the other two looked okay.

I ended up missing a week of work. I was "very good", I stayed off of it, used crutches, iced it, wrapped it, etc.

So, as of today, I can walk on it, but there is still swelling, right on the inside of my ankle. It still throbs and aches, and at night, it's just so sore.

I called the doc to see how long it would be before it was finally healed.....his answer was to give me a referral to a podiatrist. Of course, it's weeks before I can get in!!

So, does anyone have any idea how long it might stay swollen?

Thanks for any ideas

Julia

 

[rascalmom]

I hate to tell you this, but I badly sprained & fractured my ankle a year ago last week. The original x-rays did not show the fracture & it took a trip to the podiatrist to find the fracture. I ended up in a walking brace from Oct. to Dec. Still had soreness after Christmas & went back to have it rechecked. X-rays showed it was not healing, so I was put back in the brace & prescribed a bone-stimulator to wear every night. Now, one year later I still have some tenderness in the muscle tissue & it will still swell at times. I talked to both my specialist & my cousin who is a physical therapist & they both said that it sometimes takes this long. Now I understand why it is so bad when an elderly person breaks a bone - I'm in my early 40's in this thing has been a pain in the ----- leg for far too long!

 

[SC Minnie]

I sprained my ankle at work on August 1 and it is still sore. It was swollen by the time I got home that night. I kept ice on it for a couple of day and the major swelling went down but it is still 'larger' than the other ankle.

 

[MsDisney23]

I have always heard that most sprain's are worse than a broken one. I would also have them re ex-ray it. That happen to my MIL, turns out it was broken! I hope you feel better soon!

 

[LBAK]

I had what the doctor referred to as a 3rd degree sprain and he told me I would have been better off with a broken bone as far as the healing goes. It took me months and lots of physical therapy to get better. Good Luck to you. Feel better!

 

[Breezy_Carol]

I was going to suggest Physical Therapy rather than a podiatrist. And you would get in a lot sooner.

 

[indigoxtreme]

Also try the old remedy Epsom Saltz to soak you ankly in. Get the water real hot and place the saltz in the water. It does help... My DD sprained hers that bad a few years ago and it took a couple of months to finally not bother her. She had to wear shoes with good support in them, so she got to wear tennis shoes to work for a while. Take care.

 

[Pea-n-Me]

Do you have a primary care doctor? If so, you should be following up with him or her on this. They will probably want to repeat the XRays and maybe even do an MRI if there is a question of whether it's broken. They will then refer you to an appropriate specialist, and you'll be able to get in sooner. That person will give you better instructions so you aren't in the dark about it.

Good luck. A similar thing happened to a coworker recently and his instructions, therapy and follow up were very specific and thorough.

 

[vacanut]

My SO severely sprained his ankle last summer and it was much worse than if he had fractured it. He was off work for 2 weeks, had to use crutches, etc. He did use a brace for a while after to keep it mobilized. Sometimes a sprain can be more painful than a fracture. To this day his ankle still isn't the same I think its an area that will always be sensitive.

I would follow up with your PCP perhaps they could send you for Xrays. Good luck and don't get discouraged.

 

[Christine]

Months!!

Also, it's important to get the proper exercise for the sprain. That will speed it along. I remember when I sprained my ankle, my doctor gave me a series of "foot" exercises that would keep the tendons in the area moving.

My co-worker's wife sprained her foot really bad and her doctor told her to use a stationary bike everyday.

As long as you know it is a sprain, movement is key.