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Suggest Treatment For Sprained Ankles

Posted on Wed, 26 Nov 2014

Question: i think i sprained my ankle or tore some ligaments in a boot camp class i took this morning. i was doing box jumps and came down unevenly from the jump off the box and rolled my left foot over catching the ground with the outer edge. i felt snapping and immediate pain. was able to limp around a bit. i left after that and went home and have had my foot up and icing every half hour since then. probably happened a couple hours ago. pretty swollen by the outer ankle bone and at the top of the foot there appears to be a knot just below the swollen ankle bone. i plan to go to my ortho clinic tomorrow as a walk in (they have an injury clinic). however what bothers me is my entire foot and toes and even lower leg almost up to my knee are really cold and numb feeling. can't warm them up. hurts to rotate my foot at all. ok to wait until tomorrow morning to go in?

Answered by Dr. Dr. Praveen Tayal (2 hours later)

Brief Answer:
Can be fracture or hematoma.

Detailed Answer:
Hello,
Thanks for posting your query.
After a sudden fall on the foot, appearance of pain, swelling, tenderness, etc are all indicative of hematoma formation either due to a soft tissue injury or due to a hairline fracture.
For diagnosis it is important to get an x-ray foot and a MRI scan of the area done. X-rays are very sensitive for picking up any fracture and MRI is one of the best tests for ruling out and identifying soft tissue injuries in the area of fall.
I recommend you to consult an Orthopedician for proper examination and required investigations. You can wait till tomorrow morning if the pain is not very severe and the swelling is not actively increasing.
Meanwhile -
1. Do a cold compress on the area of injury.
2. Avoid weight bearing on the foot.
3. Keep the foot elevated on two pillows while resting.
4. Get some mild pain killers prescribed from your doctor.
I hope this answers your query.
In case you have additional questions or doubts, you can forward them to me, and I shall be glad to help you out.
Wishing you good health.
Regards.
Dr. Praveen Tayal.
For future query, you can directly approach me through my profile URL http://bit.ly/Dr-Praveen-Tayal

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar

Follow up: Dr. Dr. Praveen Tayal (47 minutes later)

Thank you for the quick response. I plan to go tomorrow morning to ortho clinic. Hope it's nothing major. Thank you also for the quick "in the meantime..." suggestions.

Answered by Dr. Dr. Praveen Tayal (2 hours later)

Brief Answer:
You are welcome.

Detailed Answer:
Hello.
Thank you.
I am happy I could help.
Please do recommend our services to others too in case you found them helpful. For future query, you can directly approach me through my profile URL http://bit.ly/Dr-Praveen-Tayal
Wishing you the best in whatever you do.
Best regards.

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar

Follow up: Dr. Dr. Praveen Tayal (9 minutes later)

it is still pretty swollen and starting to bruise mostly on the top left edge of the foot. Should I be concerned about the tingling and numbness and cold toes and foot or is that just because of the swelling.

Answered by Dr. Dr. Praveen Tayal (1 hour later)

Brief Answer:
It is due to hematoma.

Detailed Answer:
The coldness of the foot and numbness is due to the swelling. The skin color change is due to hematoma formation in the area. This will all subside once the swelling subsides. You can wait till morning to see an orthopedician. Keep the leg elevated on two pillows till then.
Regards.

Note: For further queries, consult a joint and bone specialist, an Orthopaedic surgeon. Book a Call now.

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar