HOW THEY DIAGNOSE AN ANKLE SPRAIN OR ANKLE FRACTURE THE MOST COMMON SPRAIN IN SPORTS AND HOW THEY TREAT IT

---

What is the most common kind of sprain? An ankle sprain. Ankles are the most common acute injury in tennis(nope, not tennis elbow).In fact,"ankle sprains make up 45% of all injuries in basketball, 31% in soccer, and 25% in volleyball.In professional, college, and high school football, ankle sprains account for 10% to 15% of all time lost to injury". But you don't need to be sporty to sprain the ankle. Often it happens just stepping off the curb or walking on an uneven surface.



Ouch! Video of a Tennis Player Spraining the Ankle by InvertingClick the Arrow to Start







The most common ankle sprain is an inward twist(called inversion) with the foot turning underneath the ankle such as the tennis player in this video.

The 5 Most Common Running Inujuries



What is a sprain? A sprain is a stretched or torn ligament. Ligaments are bands that connect one bone to another at a joint and help keep the bones from moving out of place.Ankle sprain is more common than ankle fracture. Often you need an x ray to determine if the ankle has a fracture. How do they diagnose a sprain? The signs of an ankle sprain can include:

pain or tenderness

swelling

discoloration (as when local blood vessels are torn)

bruising

inability to walk or bear weight on the joint

stiffness





At the outside of the ankle, one of the leg bones is attached to a bone in the foot by three small ligaments called the lateral collateral ligaments of the ankle. The anterior or front ligament is the one that is most often injured in ankle sprains.A ligament is like a leather band that connects the two bones. When the bones are moved the band is stretched. Too much stretch and the ligament sprains or just gets torn.

Read Part Two About Ankle Sprain Diagnosis and Treatment




Doctors grade ankle sprains by the location of the injury and the degree of damage to the ligament. Grade I, II or III ankle sprains. As the ankle starts to swell it begins to hurt and becomes discolored (as for example, the small blood vessels in the area are torn and bleed) depending upon the extent of injury. In a grade I sprain, the swelling is typically localized. The worse the sprain, the more diffuse the swelling and bruising.