my daughters year long ankle ordeal...very long, sorry - Foot Problems Message Board

specialK05 · 07-27-2008, 11:19 AM

Last year my now 15 year old daughter turned her ankle playing basketball. At first we just rested it, iced it, and told her she was fine. Four weeks later, we realized it was not getting any better. At this point she was playing basketball, lacrosse, and tennis and was in a great deal of pain. We decided to take her to a friend of ours who was an orthopedic. (This was in April) He x-rayed it and found that there was a small avulsion where a peice of the bone had been pulled off. He put her in an air cast for 4 weeks. After those 4 weeks she returned to sports, and the pain started again. We took her back and he put her in physical therapy. The ankle would feel a little bit better but would still swell really badly and she was in a lot of pain. In July the therapist referred us to another orthapedic who did more x rays and an MRI. The MRI showed that there were some ligaments that looked frayed as if they had been torn. She recommended re constructive surgery but said she could not hurt it anymore, leaving the decision up to her. Since she wanted to play basketball, she decided to hold off. Over the year, some mornings she would wake up in horrible amounts of pain. Other days, she would be fine. She also played tennis at the same time, and played basketball all year round. Her ankle now does not swell as much, but she still will wake up some days and have trouble walking. Most of the pain is in between the actual bone and the piece that came off, as well as on the outside of her leg up into her knee. One of the weirdest thing that happens is that about 3 minutes into a basketball game, her entire leg will feel fatigued and exhausted. She is supposed to have more MRI's and x-rays done, but we really are at a loss. We realize the surgery would be probably a good fix, but at the same time there are some days where shes fine. Has anyone had any kind of problem like this? Once again I'm sorry for the length of this, I really just need some kind of recommendation!!

janewhite1 · 07-27-2008, 07:09 PM

Oh, yeah, been there, done that, bought the closet full of orthopedic paraphernalia.

So, she had an avulsion fracture, there may be some fraying of the ligaments, now she has intermittent pain that sometimes goes up her leg.

I disagree with the doctor who said she couldn't hurt it anymore. Not the ligament, maybe, but having damage to one ligament puts extra strain on other parts of the foot, including the peroneal muscles and peroneal tendons. That could in fact account for some of the pain up her leg. Also, I'm sure she's guarding the injured foot, which will put extra strain on the whole body. Massaging the outside of the calf could help a bit.

Definitely get the MRI and X-rays done, but keep in mind that no film is perfect, and it's particularly difficult to see things in the foot, which has so many tiny critically important parts.

Meanwhile, does she wear any kind of support on a daily basis? Or at least for sports? Is she still doing exercises?

Have you seen an orthopedist who is a board-certified foot and ankle surgeon? Do that, see what he says. If you decide to go with surgery, she will be down for a while, it is a big deal. However, most people have very good outcomes from ankle ligament reconstructive surgery.

Hang in there, you are not alone.