If you feel like your ankle will “give out” on a regular basis, then there is a good chance you may have chronic ankle instability. This can lead to a greatly increased risk of ankle sprains and rob you of your ability to participate in your favorite activities, such as exercising rigorously or playing sports such as football and basketball. Thankfully, though, this condition can often be treated very successfully. Here are some potential treatment options.
Non-Surgical Treatments
In many cases, chronic ankle instability will be treated through physical therapy. This could include exercises to help strengthen the ankle muscles to reduce the risk of a sprain. For example, your therapist may recommend an exercise where you stand on one foot with your eyes closed in order to help improve brain/ankle coordination. Splinting is another non-surgical treatment option for chronic ankle instability, helping make it easier for people to participate in activities that would pose a heightened risk of a stand.
Surgical Treatments
If conservative treatment options prove ineffective, then your doctor may recommend a surgical procedure in order to fix the issue. One of the more common procedures is repairing the outside ankle ligaments in order to increase stability of the joint. Another option is reconstructing the outside ligaments by weaving a tendon graft through the bones on the outside of the ankle.
Chronic ankle instability can be an extremely frustrating problem that can greatly affect your quality of life, but there is hope. Please do not continue to suffer from something that can be fixed. Contact Advanced Spine and Orthopedics online or give us a call at 817-310-8783 to learn more about how we can help.
