The Chronic Sprained Ankle That Won’t Heal

A sprained ankle is a very common injury that overstretches or tears the ligaments around the ankle. Check out the tests recommended by our physiotherapist Yi Jing below to see if your ankles, calf, and hips function well. Contact us for help if you have difficulty identifying the cause of your chronic ankle pain.

 

HOW SEVERE IS YOUR ANKLE SPRAIN / TORN LIGAMENTS?

According to the severity of the stretched/ torn ligaments, a sprained ankle can be graded as below:

Grade I- an overstretched or a mild tear of the ligament. The ankle is sore with a little swelling.
Grade II- a moderate ligament tear. The ankle is swollen with some bruising.
Grade III- a full tear of the ligament. You might hear a pop sound during the injury and experience more pain, swelling and bruising. You might also feel unstable when putting weight on your ankle.

Most ligament injuries heal within 6-8 weeks. If your pain and swelling persist beyond this, please check through the list below:

1. ANKLE MOBILITY
Knee-to-wall test

• While keeping your heel on the floor and knee touching the wall, what is the longest distance between your big toe and the wall? Are both ankles the same?

2. CALF STRENGTH
Single-leg-heel raises X 25 sets

• Can you perform 25 single leg heel raises (both with straight-knee and bent-knee) Or at least the same amount of repetition as your non-injured side?

3. ANKLE STRENGTH
Ankle inversions & eversions X 25 sets

• Does your injured ankle feel the same performing 25 ankle inversions and eversions against resistance band as your non-injured ankle?

4. BALANCE & PROPRIOCEPTION
Single leg stand

• How do you feel when you stand on your injured leg on an unstable surface (e.g. a mattress)? Does it feel the same as you stand on your non-injured side?

If you have ticked off the above, but your ankle still doesn’t feel 100%, you might want to check your hip strength as well.

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