Ankle instability occurs when ligaments and muscles weaken after a sprain, causing difficulty in walking and running. Treatment options include special shoes, rehabilitation, and surgery. Strengthening exercises can heal nerve sensors and prevent twisting, while surgery may involve tightening or grafting ligaments.
A stable ankle is instrumental in a person’s ability to walk and run. When an ankle sprains, the ligaments and muscles that support it can weaken. Ankle instability occurs when a person’s ankle has become too weak to be reliable when walking, often as a result of a series of sprains. A person with ankle instability may feel as if the ankle gives out when on rough or uneven ground. This can make walking, running, or participating in normal activities difficult.
Normally, an ankle has limited up-and-down and side-to-side movement. This range of motion is protected by ligaments and bones that keep the joints responsible for these movements stable. When a person sprains their ankle, the ligaments or connective tissue that help hold bones together can stretch or tear. Repetitive ankle sprain can weaken the ankle and make it unstable when a person walks.
Sprained ankle ligaments can also cause damage to the nerve sensors that tell the brain where the ankle is. Sensors like those found in the ankle ligaments are responsible for letting the brain know the location of its hands, arms and other body parts, even when a person isn’t paying attention to them. When these nerve sensors are damaged, it is easier for a person to misstep and as a result cause more damage to the ankle.
Treatment options for ankle instability range from special shoes to rehabilitation to surgery. In some cases, braces or special high-topped shoes or heels may be used to help keep the ankle still while walking. It is also possible to treat ankle instability with strengthening exercises as prescribed by a physical therapist. The exercises strengthen the ligaments and muscles on the outside of the ankle to keep it from twisting. These exercises can also help a person regain feeling by healing nerve sensors, so he can tell where his foot is being placed.
There are times when rehabilitation is not enough to treat ankle instability. In these cases, surgery may be the method of choice. During surgery, the surgeon may tighten ligaments or graft another ligament, usually gathered around the little toe, to strengthen or replace the ligament in the ankle. In both cases, the surgery is usually followed by rest and rehabilitation. After rehabilitation, the patient is usually able to return to normal activities without experiencing ankle instability.
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