What to Do Immediately After a Sports-Related Ankle Injury

Ankle injuries are common, especially among athletes and other active people. But because your ankle supports your weight and moves in so many ways, these painful injuries can happen to anyone, at any age. 

The steps you take right after an ankle injury can shape how well you recover and how prone you are to injuries in the future. In this post, the team at Texas Foot & Ankle Specialists, PLLC, tells you what to do.

1. Stop what you’re doing

The first step is simple: stop what you’re doing. Continuing to “play through the pain” can cause more severe damage, like a torn ligament or a fracture. Even if the pain feels relatively mild and manageable at first, forcing the ankle to bear weight when it’s vulnerable can quickly lead to complications.

2. Check your injury

Once you’re sitting down, remove your shoe and sock and take some time to assess your injury and your symptoms. Look for bruising, swelling, redness, or bleeding, and try to remember if you heard or felt a popping noise or sensation — a sign of a possible torn ligament or even a fracture. 

Gently check to see if you can move your ankle without pain, but be aware: Even if you can still move your ankle, that doesn’t mean the injury isn’t serious. It simply helps you decide what steps to take next, and it also helps you remember details to share with our team.

3. Use RICE

For mild ankle injuries, turn to RICE: rest, ice, compression, and elevation. Rest keeps weight off your ankle and gives it time to jumpstart the healing process, while ice and compression reduce pain and swelling. Compression also helps stabilize the joint, preventing further injury. And finally, elevation also reduces swelling by promoting fluid drainage.

These simple steps help you feel more comfortable and promote early healing while protecting your ankle from further injury. That said, RICE is a short-term measure intended to relieve pain and protect the joint — it’s not intended as a treatment for moderate to severe injuries. 

4. Take NSAIDs

Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), like ibuprofen and naproxen, are designed to reduce both pain and inflammation. Like RICE, NSAIDs are not intended to replace a medical evaluation — simply to help you feel more comfortable until you can visit our office.

5. Seek medical care as soon as possible

Very mild injuries may be managed at home, but in nearly every case, having a medical evaluation is a smart move to make sure your injury isn’t serious and to prevent further problems, including re-injuring the joint. Even a very mild ankle injury can make the joint unstable, making further injury much more likely.

For more serious injuries, prompt medical evaluation is essential, particularly if your ankle is deformed, badly swollen, or if bruising or swelling spreads quickly. You should also seek medical treatment for any ankle injury that keeps you from walking or moving the joint without significant pain. 

During your visit, we perform a visual and hands-on evaluation of your ankle and review your symptoms, along with details of the accident itself. In most cases, we order diagnostic imaging to check for fractures and other injuries, which helps us to develop a treatment plan for you.

6. Follow your treatment plan

Finally, once that treatment plan is in place, it’s important to follow that plan to reduce pain and swelling, protect your ankle, and avoid further injury. Many patients benefit from physical therapy to speed healing and improve strength and flexibility without causing additional strain.

Returning to sports or other activities too quickly can lead to long-term ankle instability and a future filled with ankle pain and injuries — even an increased risk of ankle arthritis. If you have any questions or concerns about your treatment plan, call us right away.

Protect your long-term health

Ankle injuries may be common, but that doesn’t mean they shouldn’t be taken seriously. Even seemingly minor injuries can lead to ankle weakness that, in turn, increases your risk of future injuries and disability.

To find out what’s causing your ankle pain and how we can help, schedule an appointment at our locations in Mesquite, Forney, and Kaufman, Texas, today.