Ankle pain Physiotherapy Mechelen
The ankle joint is heavily loaded on a daily basis. The foot has a small support area compared to the body weight that it carries. Because of this it is not unusual to sprain your ankle or to develop overuse injuries.
Ankle distortion or ankle sprain
As described above, it is often the case that the ankle is sprained. This is particularly common in pivoting sports such as basketball, football, indoor football, handball and volleyball.
Usually the ankle is turned inwards, this is called an inversion trauma. In an inversion trauma you experience pain on the outside of the ankle, and swelling can occur immediately. The most frequently injured ligament is the anterior talofibular ligament followed by the calcaneofiblair ligament and finally the posterior talofibular ligament.
An eversion trauma is when the ankle is turned outwards. The swelling and pain will then mainly be on the inside of the ankle joint.
If there is severe swelling and pain and it is almost impossible to put weight on your foot, it is recommended to have an RX taken to rule out possible fractures. An ultrasound or an MRI scan can also provide a better picture of the condition of the ligaments.
It is important to reduce swelling and pain and to regain mobility. In addition, it is important to work on the stability and proprioception of the ankle. All the muscles around the ankle must be trained to ensure stability. At the end of the rehabilitation, the exercises will be as sport-specific as possible so that the threshold of rehabilitation to your return to sport is as low as possible. If you do not treat your ankle distortion well, there is a greater risk of injury recurrences and other complications.
Achilles tendinopathy:
Tendinopathy of the achilles tendon can be triggered by prolonged loading and by the development of repetitive microtraumata. Other factors such as obesity, non-adapted footwear, walking on hard ground, falling of the foot (overpronation) or short/weak calf muscles can also be the cause of the complaints. The pain is located at the back of the heel, decreases with warming up but then increases as the activity progresses. It is important to tackle this kind of injury as quickly as possible. An 'achilles tendinitis' or achilles tendinopathy can cause a loss of quality of the tendon, which is referred to as a tendinosis. Tendinosis increases the chance of a tear or rupture and additional surgery.
By specific training of the achilles tendon we make it stronger and more resilient for further loading.
In rehabilitation, it is crucial to tackle not only the causal elements but also the other risk factors. Through extensive screening, we can start the best possible rehabilitation.
Plantar fasciitis:
Plantar fasciitis is a condition of the fascia (a thick tendon structure) under the foot sole. This plantar fascia is stretched during standing, walking and running. This causes a large pulling force at the level of the heel bone (calcaneum). When these repetitive forces become too large, an inflammation can develop on the fascia. Over time, it is possible to develop an ossification, leading to heel spurs.
This condition is most common among runners, tennis players, dancers and basketball players. It can also occur in individuals with poor footwear, weak/short calf muscles, overweight or overpronation of the foot.
Symptoms often resemble those of achilles tendinopathy: the pain decreases after a few steps but increases again as the load becomes higher. The pain is regularly situated at the foot sole at the calcaneum.
In the short term it is recommended to reduce the load on the fascia as much as possible. In addition, stretching of the calf muscles can also bring relief. In the long term it is important that the biomechanical risk factors are addressed so that the muscles are loaded in the right way.
Through a screening we can see which exercises will make your ankle and foot pain free again. You will also receive an exercise program for home and we ensure that the chance of recurrence is minimized.
