Sprained Ankle? Here’s When You Need A Doctor

Sprained ankles happen all the time, but sometimes the tissues stretched during the injury can actually be torn. Ligaments can be partially or completely torn during even seemingly minor injuries. Broken bones may occur along with nerve damage when twisting or injuring your ankle.

You want to ensure you aren’t dealing with a more severe injury to allow proper healing and avoid chronic ankle instability, ongoing pain, or a sprain that never seems to fully heal.

Degrees of Sprains

Sprains are graded mild, moderate, and severe based on how many ligaments are injured and how much they are injured. With a mild sprain, only small fibers are torn within the ligament. It is likely to heal within a few days. With a moderate sprain, there are more involved and some partial tearing of the ligament occurs. You may experience some instability when you put weight on the ankle or have difficulty walking.

A severe sprain can mean that the ligament is completely torn. There will be extreme swelling, bruising, and you will most likely be unable to put any weight on the injured ankle. So how can you tell if you need to see a specialist after spraining your ankle?

Severe Swelling

It is normal to have some swelling after injuring your ankle. However, if the swelling comes on quickly after your injury or continues to get worse after your injury it may be cause for concern.

Also if bruising continues to spread beneath the skin around your ankle or pain increases instead of getting better it might be time to seek medical care.

Weight Bearing Pain

If you are unable to put any weight on your injured ankle it is best to get it checked out. If you try to take a few steps and experience significant pain there may be a fracture or more serious ligament injury going on.

Do not bear weight on your injured ankle and get the injury looked at as soon as possible. They may take an X ray to rule out a broken bone.

Visible Distortion

If your ankle looks crooked, tilted, or out of place then you may have suffered a dislocation or fracture. If you notice any obvious deformity in your ankle do not try to move it or straighten it.

Seek medical care immediately to have your injury evaluated and so that you can prevent any further damage from occurring.

Popping Feeling

If when you injured your ankle you felt or heard a popping sensation then you may have a serious injury. A pop usually means that there is a significant tear in one or more of your ligaments. You may even have torn a tendon.

This type of injury is usually accompanied by severe swelling that comes on quickly. You will also have pain and difficulty moving your ankle.

Pain That Doesn’t Go Away

With a mild ankle sprain your pain should start to subside within a couple of days. If your pain continues to get worse after your injury or if it doesn’t go away within 2-3 days then you should get it checked out.

Constant pain is a sign that there may be some lingering instability in the ligaments that haven’t healed properly. Pain that doesn’t go away can also be an indication that you have damaged some cartilage or have a fracture that has gone undetected.

Numbness or Tingling

Do you feel numbness, tingling, or a burning sensation in your foot after spraining your ankle? This could be a sign that there are nerves involved with the injury. Numbness and tingling can occur when there is an injury to the nerves or if they are being compressed.

If this symptom occurs after spraining your ankle, you shouldn’t ignore it. Long-term numbness, tingling, or weakness can occur if there is nerve damage and it is not treated promptly.

Pale, Blue, or Cold Foot

After spraining your ankle does your foot appear pale, blue, or colder than your other foot? This could be a sign that there is poor circulation to your foot. Loss of blood flow to an extremity is an emergency.

These symptoms may mean you have injured an artery or that the swelling is severe enough that it is cutting off circulation. You should seek emergency care if this occurs.

Lack of Stability

After spraining your ankle it will feel weak at first but should continue to get stronger as it heals. If after a sprain your ankle feels like it is constantly giving out when you walk or putting weight on it then you could have some damage to the ligaments.

If you have chronic ankle instability you are more likely to sprain your ankle again and could cause long term damage to the joint. See a specialist to have them assess the strength and function of your injured ligaments.

They may recommend bracing, rehabilitation, or other measures to prevent future injury.

No Improvement

If your symptoms are not improving within a week then you should seek medical care. The sooner you seek treatment for an injury the better off you will be.

If you fail to seek treatment and allow your injured ankle to heal on its own you run the risk of it healing incorrectly. This can lead to chronic pain, weakness, and you will be more likely to reinjure your ankle.

Diagnostic Tests

Your doctor will perform a physical examination on your ankle and may order an X ray to rule out fractures. If a fracture is ruled out but there is still suspicion for a ligament injury they may order an MRI of your ankle.

Doctors at Wasatch Foot & Ankle Institute will carefully examine any ankle injury you may have.

They will take a history to find out how the injury occurred and test the stability of your ankle.

If fractures are ruled out and there is still a concern for injury they may order an MRI to visualize all of the structures within your ankle. The treatment you receive will be based upon the extent of your injury.

Allowing Proper Healing to Occur

Knowing what serious symptoms to look for will allow you to take action and ensure you are doing everything you can to properly heal your injured ankle. Don’t ignore pain or try to play through the injury.

Make sure you allow ample time for rehabilitation and continue to do the exercises they give you after your injury to prevent future injury.

Wasatch Foot & Ankle Institute offers both non-surgical and surgical treatment options for patients that have injured their ankle. Don’t let an ankle injury keep you from doing what you love, seek treatment and get back to normal.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q1: How do I know if my ankle sprain is severe?

A: You may have a severe ankle sprain if you cannot put any weight on your foot when you try to walk, there is severe swelling and bruising around your ankle, you heard or felt a popping sound when you injured your ankle, your ankle looks crooked, or your pain does not go away after a few days.

Q2: When should I go to the ER for a sprained ankle?

A: If you have severe pain in your ankle, your ankle looks deformed, you experience numbness in your foot, you can’t move your foot or toes, or your foot turns pale, blue, or feels cold, you should go to the emergency room.

Q3: How long should a sprained ankle take to heal?

A: Sprained ankles take anywhere from a couple of days to a few weeks to heal. Recovery time will depend on how severe the injury is and how you take care of your ankle while it heals.

Q4: Can you walk on a sprained ankle?

A: If you are only experiencing mild pain when you walk on your sprained ankle, then it is likely ok to do so. If you experience severe pain when you try to put weight on your ankle or it feels like you will roll your ankle, then you should not be weight-bearing on that foot.

Q5: What happens if you ignore a severe ankle sprain?

A: If you ignore your severe ankle sprain, it could lead to chronic ankle instability, re-injury of your ankle, chronic pain, and long-term damage to your ankle joint.