Ankle sprains happen often in sports, especially to runners and athletes in jumping sports. To treat an ankle sprain, RICE--or rest, ice, compression, and elevation--is just what the doctor ordered. But can anything else be done to get you back on your feet more quickly?
When you sprain your ankle, you lose the ability to fully bend your foot and ankle upward. When this movement, technically known as dorsiflexion, is painful, standing and walking on the injured ankle can hurt. Physical therapists try to improve ankle dorsiflexion using a technique called joint mobilization. With the patient lying down, the physical therapist supports the ankle at about a 90-degree angle with one hand and assists movement of the ankle joint with the other.
In this study, the authors wanted to know whether this technique, in which the therapist adds hands on mobilization, helped patients more than RICE alone. Though patients got better no matter what their treatment, they got better faster when they had joint mobilization in addition to RICE. Patients who had joint mobilization needed fewer treatment sessions. They showed pain-free ankle movement sooner, and they were able to walk more quickly than those who only had RICE.
Fortunately, the body has some natural healing mechanisms. Either on its own or with help, a sprained ankle will heal eventually. Still, this study suggests that a little "laying on of hands" can go a long way toward getting you back on the track or field.
References:
Toni Green, GradDipPhty, GradDipManipTher, MAppSc, et al. A Randomized Controlled Trial of a Passive Accessory Joint Mobilization on Acute Ankle Inversion Sprains. In Physical Therapy. April 2001. Vol. 81. No. 4. Pp. 984-994 |
