The human ankle is a vital structural component that serves various functions in the body. The ankle joint, comprising the tibia, fibula, and talus bones, includes the tibiotalar joint. Just like any other part of the body, the ankle is also an important part of the system of the skeleton.
Like the other usual parts of the body, your ankles also include bones, ligaments, tendons, and joints. The mobility of the human body entirely depends on the ankle present in our legs.
The ankle is specifically located near the bottom of your leg. It is the point at which the foot and the lower leg join. Whenever you move in a direction to keeps you steady and balanced, your ankle also moves in a particular way.
Your ankle normally moves in two different ways. They are Plantar flexion and Dorsiflexion. It is plantar flexion when the movement of the foot involves pointing the foot downward and away from the leg. It is dorsiflexion when the ankle moves the foot towards the shin or body. So how to know if you broke your ankle? Letโs find out.
How To Know If You Broke Your Ankle
A fractured ankle is painful, and in such a situation, it is important to seek medical assistance. The first way to know whether you have a broken foot or not is from pain. Depending on the depth of the injury the pain can be mild to terrible.
If you feel any unusual pain while moving thatโs the first indicator to get it checked. Similarly, if you find any swelling or any kind of bruising shades on your ankle there are chances that your ankle is fractured. If you feel like you canโt stand on your own, or if you feel pain or find it impossible to put your body weight on your foot, then it is high time to get your foot checked.
There are instances, where your feet may look out of shape or different which may have been caused by the fracture. If you hear any pop sound from your ankle while doing something there are chances of ankle fracture. If you find your ankle isnโt moving or if you feel pain while touching anywhere near your ankle, it is high time to get your ankle checked.ย
Necessary Steps To Take If You Break Your Ankle
Panicking will get you nowhere, so try to calm down. Breathe deeply and try to calm the people around you also. If you broke your leg while doing something, put that activity on hold. Sit down wherever you are and stop putting pressure on it.
Adding pressure on it while trying to walk will worsen the situation. Give support to the injured leg, either lift your leg and keep it above a bundle of something or a pillow. Keep your leg straight and stop moving it. Trying to lift the leg is good to reduce the swelling.
Lift your leg and keep it above your heart level. Donโt overburden your leg and keep it safe. Apply an ice pack to the injured ankle. It will help with reducing the pain and reduce the intensity of swelling. Donโt try to do anything on that leg, donโt allow anyone to give any massages, or donโt even let other people touch it except for professionals.
Take any pain relief medicine or use pain relief sprays. Accept advice from only people who know about this. If you need to move use someone else to lift you or use crutches, donโt give weight on that leg for the time being.
Get medical help, let yourself in in a hospital, and explain the situation that led to this. And listen to them. Follow their advice and trust their guidance. Take rest till the date, the doctors say. Rest is the only way to recover from this. Only rest can help one get better.
So obey whatever the doctor says and wait till you have recovered completely. Eat healthy food that can help you with healing. Drink water and eat plenty of fruits that are protein which will help in fixing your bones quickly.
Importance Of Ankle
The ankle serves as a mother for the human body because it does all the important difficult tasks associated with it. It looks out for movement of the human body, balance, and the overall function of the human body.
Balance And The Ability To Withstand Weight
The critical role of the ankle is to help give the ability to the human body to withstand the weight of it. It needs to support and carry the human body by holding the foot and lower leg together for various functions like running, jumping, walking, etc.
It serves as a sturdy base to distribute the bodyโs burden equally over the foot. This helps us to keep a good spinal position/ posture. This enables us to do and perform our everyday routine without any difficulties. The ankle is the sole requirement for our ability to move and any issues with it can leave us immovable It helps us to continue our daily routine without any difficulties.
Another important role of the ankle is to maintain the equilibrium and the rigidity associated with it. Even if we are hiking or climbing a mountain, the ground might not be even because of the unpaved roads and routes. Normally we can adjust ourselves by keeping the body straight during these diverse tasks.
We fall during such situations because we lose our balance. This is possible because the ankle coordinates the muscle and our sensory inputs with the help of joints and nerves.ย
Absorption Of Shock
When your body or ankle is put under unnatural occurrences or pressures while your body comes in contact with the ground, it tends to protect it. This ability to protect the body from critical-unexpected pressures by the human ankle is Shock absorption.
This form of shock absorption and its ability to do so is very necessary and critical to avoid and save the bones and cartilage of the lower leg/foot.
Cartilage, ligaments, and sensory inputs together with the help of the joint of the ankle while doing tasks like jumping, dancing, running, and so on.
The ligaments around the ankle joint primarily provide stability and support to the joint. So it is very important to look after the condition of the ankle and the interior parts which make it complete, to ensure good absorption and to reduce the risk of any injuries.
Physical Performances
The foot is an amazing mechanism that performs a variety of roles in doing sports and other physically challenging activities. The ability to withstand, speed, balance, quickness, and adaptability are all important functions of the foot.
During movements such as running, leaping, and jumping, the foot plays an important job by giving it the ability to move. It all depends on the ability of them to control the force they give to the foot while coming in contact with the ground. It is also important to ensure the stability and their ability to maintain balance throughout. With sturdy feet, one can move quickly and be flexible while maintaining balance at the same time.ย
Common Foot Problems
Some common problems with the ankle1 are faced by athletes and some other people. Letโs discuss them in detail.
Athleteโs Foot
It is an infection that mostly occurs between the toes and is fungal in a sense. This usually happens to someone who walks in a mushy area. This infection can spread quickly to other parts of the skin. It causes itchiness and even leads to pain and discomfort.
People get an infection from it usually when they roam around barefoot as in the shower, or pool. These kinds of fungi are present in wet and moist environments.
Dirty and moist shoes and footwear are also a means for the spread of this. The way to prevent them is by keeping the feet clean. Also, clean your shoes and footwear with clean and dry clothes. Use lotion to keep your feet clean and donโt roam barefoot.ย
Bunions
Bunions develop at the joint at the base of the big toe. Bunions are primarily caused by factors such as foot structure, inherited traits, and certain medical conditions.ย It can also be caused by wearing ill-tight footwear. The technical name for this blister is hallux valgus. Small and tight footwear is the reason for this.ย
The toes and surrounding areas are pressured by tight footwear. This joint is where the bones of both the foot and big toe meet.
Unable to walk because of pain, blisters in the big toe, softness near the skin of the big toe, a small bump-like thing, corns and calluses, restricted movement of the big toe, numbness or tingling, and changes in foot shape are signs of bunions. Even if it sounds very silly, it can cause immense pain.
Using the correct shoes and footwear that fits your foot is the first and foremost thing to do. You can also buy a pad-like thing from shops that can be stuck to the shoe that you are wearing. This will prevent your leg from blistering.2 If in any way your legs are swollen, apply ice on it for 10 minutes with equal intervals in between and you can see the difference in an hour.ย
Ingrown Nails
This situation is when the nails on your toes grow in. These can be caused when you wear ill-fitting footwear that puts pressure on your toes. Or happens when you are not taking care of your nails properly. One should trim their nails routinely.
Cutting your nails properly can also cause trauma to your toes. If you cut your tails too short it can act adversely if there is a counter action like running. Genetics can also be one among many reasons for this. Swelling, redness, pain while walking, and a watery substance oozing from nails are all symbols of the infection present.
Cleaning your feet and keeping them dry is a way to protect your feet from this. Using soaps and lotions which are anti-bacterial is also important. Wearing shoes that fit perfectly, and trimming your nails in the right way are all essential ways to prevent ingrown nails.ย
Heel Spur
Heel spurs3 are bony growths that typically develop where bone meets bone. Many people donโt show much signs. It cannot be comfortable and cause much discomfort later on.ย This is a difficult condition to pin down and it needs a professional to do so.
These heel spurs are caused by chronic tension applied to muscles and ligaments. This can also be caused by ill-fitting footwear, weight gain, and arthritis. Applying ice packs can help with it.
Pain reliefs, correct size shoes, injections, and ample amount of rest are the only ways in which this can be helped.ย
Final Note
You canโt treat yourself all the time. It will entirely depend on the intensity of the ankle fractures and sprain injury. The best way and the finest way is to seek medical assistance as soon as possible. When you are self-treating there are chances of doing something wrong which might cause some problems in the future.
So it is better to get treated by a professional for minimizing chronic consequences. You canโt just leave an injury hoping that it will cure on its own, you are not someone who can make decisions without any professional advice unless you are a doctor. It will lead to many further catastrophic repercussions. So, always put your health first and be practical when taking medical care.
- Milner, Stephen. โCommon disorders of the foot and ankle.โย Surgery (Oxford)ย 28.10 (2010): 514-517. โฉ๏ธ
- Hashmi, Farina, et al. โThe formation of friction blisters on the foot: the development of a laboratoryโbased blister creation model.โย Skin Research and Technologyย 19.1 (2013): e479-e489. โฉ๏ธ
- Kumai, Tsukasa, and Mike Benjamin. โHeel spur formation and the subcalcaneal enthesis of the plantar fascia.โย The Journal of Rheumatologyย 29.9 (2002): 1957-1964. โฉ๏ธ
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