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Hi Dr., Two Nights Ago, I Twisted My Ankle While
Question: Hi Dr.,
Two nights ago, I twisted my ankle while walking. There was immediately pain and I iced it for about 20 minutes once I got to my destination. There was not a lot of pain afterwards. The following day happened to be mostly sedentary, since I did not leave the house. Today, however, I have done quite a bit of walking, and that ankle has flared up, causing some mild pain to come back.
I don't think it's anything serious (perhaps a minor sprain), but my question is that I will be on a long flight for about 12 hours 3 days from now. Is there anything I should do until then to prevent any swelling, inflammation or complications during or after the flight? I am planning to do some very intense walking once I reach my destination 4 days from now, perhaps many miles per day.
Thank you in advance.
Two nights ago, I twisted my ankle while walking. There was immediately pain and I iced it for about 20 minutes once I got to my destination. There was not a lot of pain afterwards. The following day happened to be mostly sedentary, since I did not leave the house. Today, however, I have done quite a bit of walking, and that ankle has flared up, causing some mild pain to come back.
I don't think it's anything serious (perhaps a minor sprain), but my question is that I will be on a long flight for about 12 hours 3 days from now. Is there anything I should do until then to prevent any swelling, inflammation or complications during or after the flight? I am planning to do some very intense walking once I reach my destination 4 days from now, perhaps many miles per day.
Thank you in advance.
Brief Answer:
It will take time to heal
Detailed Answer:
Hello, I'm Dr. Branch, thanks for using Ask a Doctor. It sounds like you are right that this is a minor sprain, especially since you've been able to walk on it, though there is still a significant amount of pain. You have done some of the things I would recommend, such as using ice and initially resting it.
This will take time to heal, but if you want to try to allow the ankle to heal as quickly as possible, I would try not to walk too much on it as much as you can in the next few days. Start off slowly, only doing as much as you can without causing any pain. An ankle brace or elastic wrap can be helpful if you do plan to walk a lot, to keep from reinjuring the ankle. Exercise is an important part of the recovery, which initially should be with range of motion exercises (there's a good website on these here: https://www.uofmhealth.org/health-library/te7604). Anti-inflammatories such as Ibuprofen will probably help more than Tylenol for any pain you still have in the ankle.
Even with the above, it will likely gradually improve and not completely heal for at least a few weeks. Besides doing the exercises, I would try not to walk on it as much as you can to give it a chance to heal. Once you arrive at your destination, you'll just have to see how it goes with the intense walking and see if you can tolerate it. Using ice after the long days of walking, along with an anti-inflammatory, and using an ankle brace, may help keep the pain manageable.
I hope you have a good trip, please let me know if you have any other questions about any of that and I would be glad to help any way I can.
It will take time to heal
Detailed Answer:
Hello, I'm Dr. Branch, thanks for using Ask a Doctor. It sounds like you are right that this is a minor sprain, especially since you've been able to walk on it, though there is still a significant amount of pain. You have done some of the things I would recommend, such as using ice and initially resting it.
This will take time to heal, but if you want to try to allow the ankle to heal as quickly as possible, I would try not to walk too much on it as much as you can in the next few days. Start off slowly, only doing as much as you can without causing any pain. An ankle brace or elastic wrap can be helpful if you do plan to walk a lot, to keep from reinjuring the ankle. Exercise is an important part of the recovery, which initially should be with range of motion exercises (there's a good website on these here: https://www.uofmhealth.org/health-library/te7604). Anti-inflammatories such as Ibuprofen will probably help more than Tylenol for any pain you still have in the ankle.
Even with the above, it will likely gradually improve and not completely heal for at least a few weeks. Besides doing the exercises, I would try not to walk on it as much as you can to give it a chance to heal. Once you arrive at your destination, you'll just have to see how it goes with the intense walking and see if you can tolerate it. Using ice after the long days of walking, along with an anti-inflammatory, and using an ankle brace, may help keep the pain manageable.
I hope you have a good trip, please let me know if you have any other questions about any of that and I would be glad to help any way I can.
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Above answer was peer-reviewed by :
Dr. Prasad
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