Diagnosis and treatment of ankle injuries

  The ankle joint is critical in standing, walking, squatting, etc. The stability and flexibility of the ankle joint is ensured by the inner and outer ankle, the lower tibia, and the strong ligaments and joint capsule. The anatomy of the ankle allows only dorsiflexion and plantar flexion, but because the ankle joint carries almost all of the body weight, inversion, valgus, or internal or external rotation during walking or sports can cause ankle injuries.  The most common manifestation of ankle injury is swelling and pain in the ankle joint, which affects standing and walking. The ankle ligaments include the internal ankle ligament, the external ankle ligament and the inferior tibiofibular ligament. The internal ankle ligament, also known as the triangular ligament, is divided from front to back into the anterior tibial talofibular ligament, tibial root ligament and posterior tibial talofibular ligament.  Ankle sprains can cause partial injury to these ligaments, with localized congestion and edema and significant pain during activity. This type of injury can usually heal completely with rest and can be treated with topical Furtalin emulsion to relieve swelling and pain. It should be noted that in the acute stage of the injury, cold compresses can be applied, and hot water immersion is strictly prohibited, otherwise it will aggravate the bleeding and swelling. In general, after 1 week of recovery, warm water can be used to help blood circulation and promote healing. Of course neutral polyester plaster fixation is helpful for injury repair, polyester plaster is lighter in weight and more sturdy, and can be walked indoors.  2. Ankle ligament rupture with or without avulsion fracture: Compared with simple ligament injury, this type of trauma is relatively more serious, usually with more obvious swelling, usually accompanied by purple bruises under the skin, and heavier pain. It requires a hospital visit for radiographic examination. In the absence of alteration of the ankle point, surgical treatment is usually not required, and even if accompanied by a small avulsion fracture, it can be treated conservatively if it does not fall into the ankle point or does not affect the stability of the ankle joint. Usually, plaster fixation can be given, requiring fixation in the anti-injury direction, which can promote the healing of the ruptured ligaments. After 3 weeks, the plaster can be replaced with a neutral functional position plaster fixation, and after 3 weeks, the plaster can be removed and basically healed.  3.Ankle fracture: Fracture is the most serious kind of ankle injury and must be diagnosed and treated in hospital. Ankle fractures are classified into post-rotation-adduction type, post-rotation-external rotation type, pre-rotation-adduction type, pre-rotation-external rotation type and vertical compression according to the position of the foot at the time of injury, the direction of external force and different pathological changes of trauma, among which post-rotation-external rotation type is the most common, and it is classified into single, double or triple ankle fracture according to the severity.  Most ankle fractures can be satisfactorily restored by precise closed reduction with external fixation, but for unstable fracture dislocation after reduction, more than one closed reduction, cast replacement or external fixation adjustment may be required, which will inevitably increase the degree of injury and swelling and eventually lead to external fixation This will lead to prolongation of external fixation, inability to perform early functional exercises, and affect the efficacy of treatment. Therefore, repeated revision and fixation for closed repositioning should be avoided. Once closed repositioning fails, surgical internal fixation should be actively sought in a timely manner, and it is easier to achieve the ideal anatomical repositioning after repositioning under direct vision after incision.