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garn9173
Guest
He’s already had 2 or 3 this year and guess what he did last night? Yep, doctor just confirmed it.
I think my kid is going for the record of most sprained ankles in a given year
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EasterJoy
Guest
How old is the child? Does he have a normal-looking ankle in the first place? Does his gait seem like that of his peers?
As an example, there is something called a tarsal coalition that can be present in the foot; it’s a congenital condition in which two bones in the foot that aren’t supposed to be connected fail to separate, but instead harden into bone during adolescence. One of the ways it is sometimes discovered is that the young person has an unusual number of sprained ankles. It happens about 1% of the time, or so…neither super rare or super common.
That’s just something I happen to know about because I have a relative who happened to have had that condition. On evaluation, it turned out the condition had been obvious from his foot (and really, from his running style). He’d had regular physicals all during childhood, but no doctor had ever particularly noticed it, not even one of his parents! My point is not that I can diagnose your child sight-unseen, but that sometimes a string of injuries like this are worth investigation by someone with expertise to diagnose unusual orthopedic conditions. Unless your son is doing things that you’d reasonably think would cause lots of sprained ankles–you know, riding his skateboard off of garage roofs while his friends videotape his feat, that kind of thing–you may want to consider getting a referral to a pediatric orthopedist, to rule out a coalition or any other congenital conditions that show themselves in adolescence.
The evaluation probably won’t turn up anything, but as these conditions tend to be more treatable if found sooner rather than later, it is still worth doing. The relative I was referring to was lucky to have his condition diagnosed at age 12, when surgery could still be done that would free the joint instead of having to fuse it. His range of motion is still half in the good foot compared to the other one, but it is at least in more the range of normal now, and leagues better than it was. The improvement is very noticeable. Had the condition not been addressed when it was, though, he may have had no chance for high school sports or even serious recreational sports.
As an example, there is something called a tarsal coalition that can be present in the foot; it’s a congenital condition in which two bones in the foot that aren’t supposed to be connected fail to separate, but instead harden into bone during adolescence. One of the ways it is sometimes discovered is that the young person has an unusual number of sprained ankles. It happens about 1% of the time, or so…neither super rare or super common.
That’s just something I happen to know about because I have a relative who happened to have had that condition. On evaluation, it turned out the condition had been obvious from his foot (and really, from his running style). He’d had regular physicals all during childhood, but no doctor had ever particularly noticed it, not even one of his parents! My point is not that I can diagnose your child sight-unseen, but that sometimes a string of injuries like this are worth investigation by someone with expertise to diagnose unusual orthopedic conditions. Unless your son is doing things that you’d reasonably think would cause lots of sprained ankles–you know, riding his skateboard off of garage roofs while his friends videotape his feat, that kind of thing–you may want to consider getting a referral to a pediatric orthopedist, to rule out a coalition or any other congenital conditions that show themselves in adolescence.
The evaluation probably won’t turn up anything, but as these conditions tend to be more treatable if found sooner rather than later, it is still worth doing. The relative I was referring to was lucky to have his condition diagnosed at age 12, when surgery could still be done that would free the joint instead of having to fuse it. His range of motion is still half in the good foot compared to the other one, but it is at least in more the range of normal now, and leagues better than it was. The improvement is very noticeable. Had the condition not been addressed when it was, though, he may have had no chance for high school sports or even serious recreational sports.
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garn9173
Guest
He’s 10 1/2 and perfectly healthy. He’s just very active.
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celtic_catholic_1
Guest
Get him a rip-stick. Not only are they really fun, but they made my ankles stronger and less prone to sprains. I sprained my ankles quite a few times several years ago, to the point that I needed crutches for a while. My parents got me one of these rip-sticks, and I think they helped strengthen my ankles. I haven’t been quite as active as I used to be, but I haven’t sprained my ankles at all since then.
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EasterJoy
Guest
It is a little odd for even a very active child to have so many sprains, but perhaps he’s leaping back into action before the last one had a chance to properly heal, or lets his favoring of one side put extra strain on the other. That would be typical for his age group, too!
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ThyKingdomCome
Guest
Ugh, I’m sorry. Poor kid.
I have a girl who has some ankle issues - related to her dancing. They are mild so far, but I certainly don’t want her to have a lifetime of major ankle problems. My dd, who is only 10, went to PT for about 4 sessions to learn about some ankle strengthening exercises she could do, and we also got some advice on getting a particular kind of shoe inserts to help her arches (which play a part in ankles not getting injuring). In addition, I learned how to tape her ankles, which was very helpful for her in the healing process, and has actually been helpful as a preventative measure as well. Taping does require some instruction, and it is something to be used with caution, so I am grateful for having the professional advice from a PT (and also an OT) on how to do it safely.
One thing that is frustrating with injuries is that so often, you end up at some sort of evening urgent care center, and the provider who provides the diagnosis and follow up up care is not necessarily a specialist. There is enough uncertainty in the field that even a PA with experience might not be able to help you as much as a really good MD. When my dd sprained her ankle just fooling around, and saw an orthopedic PA in the urgent care at night I was concerned enough about her dance-related troubles that I made sure to get a follow up with a sports-injury MD. It made all the difference.
I don’t know if taping would be helpful for your ds or not, but if the doc didn’t mention any of these things, it might not hurt to ask if PT would be helpful, and to ask about taping methods that might help. And if you haven’t seen an MD with a specialty in something like ankles, or pediatrics, or sports injuries…it might be worth considering that for your follow up.
I have a girl who has some ankle issues - related to her dancing. They are mild so far, but I certainly don’t want her to have a lifetime of major ankle problems. My dd, who is only 10, went to PT for about 4 sessions to learn about some ankle strengthening exercises she could do, and we also got some advice on getting a particular kind of shoe inserts to help her arches (which play a part in ankles not getting injuring). In addition, I learned how to tape her ankles, which was very helpful for her in the healing process, and has actually been helpful as a preventative measure as well. Taping does require some instruction, and it is something to be used with caution, so I am grateful for having the professional advice from a PT (and also an OT) on how to do it safely.
One thing that is frustrating with injuries is that so often, you end up at some sort of evening urgent care center, and the provider who provides the diagnosis and follow up up care is not necessarily a specialist. There is enough uncertainty in the field that even a PA with experience might not be able to help you as much as a really good MD. When my dd sprained her ankle just fooling around, and saw an orthopedic PA in the urgent care at night I was concerned enough about her dance-related troubles that I made sure to get a follow up with a sports-injury MD. It made all the difference.
I don’t know if taping would be helpful for your ds or not, but if the doc didn’t mention any of these things, it might not hurt to ask if PT would be helpful, and to ask about taping methods that might help. And if you haven’t seen an MD with a specialty in something like ankles, or pediatrics, or sports injuries…it might be worth considering that for your follow up.
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Fred_Barronmy
Guest
I’d like to second the idea of a Rip-Stick. It is one of the best driveway toys ever. I’m almost 50 and I love it as much as the kids. Great with or without an ankle problem.
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St_Francis
Guest
My daughter used to fall down a lot for no apparent reason. Drove me crazy! Then she mentioned that she couldn’t push her toe down and I realized that a nerve had been severed when she cut her foot a few years before 
I explained how this caused her to be unable to balance the same way as on her other foot and she stopped falling.
So it could be something like that as well.
I explained how this caused her to be unable to balance the same way as on her other foot and she stopped falling.So it could be something like that as well.
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HouseArrest
Guest
That’s what I was thinking. I twisted my ankle years ago. I wouldn’t even call it a sprain. It was just sensitive for awhile. Every once in awhile it flares up. Of course I am a lot older than 10 1/2!
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Kelfa28
Guest
Sprains are notoriously difficult to heal properly and completely.
If he is spraining the same ankle he really needs to rest it more…though I definitely understand that is a tall order for an active 10 year old.
When my mom was much younger and dancing professionally she used to get a ton of ankle injuries.
One sprain was just due to clumsiness on her part, she tripped while wearing a stylish (ie-impractical) pair of shoes.
She refused to rest it and continued to injure it over and over until her doctor put her in a cast that basically made her immobile so she could rest it once and for all until it healed.
I was an active kiddo and considering the fact that I was involved heavily in gymnastics and ballet…I’m shocked I didn’t break or sprain anything growing up. Must have been all that milk my mom made me drink…
If he is spraining the same ankle he really needs to rest it more…though I definitely understand that is a tall order for an active 10 year old.
When my mom was much younger and dancing professionally she used to get a ton of ankle injuries.
One sprain was just due to clumsiness on her part, she tripped while wearing a stylish (ie-impractical) pair of shoes.
She refused to rest it and continued to injure it over and over until her doctor put her in a cast that basically made her immobile so she could rest it once and for all until it healed.
I was an active kiddo and considering the fact that I was involved heavily in gymnastics and ballet…I’m shocked I didn’t break or sprain anything growing up. Must have been all that milk my mom made me drink…
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EasterJoy
Guest
Kids are notorious for the “fake it 'til you make it” strategy of rehabilitation. It works better before the age of 20 than it does when you’re over 40, but they don’t heal as instantly as they think!
Oh, well. You can’t pack them in cotton balls, and most orthopedists don’t suggest that you try. If they have a patient that needs to strictly stay off an injury, they immobilize it to death!! Otherwise, they let kids be kids. If you can’t beat 'em, don’t try. Still, if this child continues on this routine of re-injury, it might be worth getting a consult the next time around.
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Cat
Guest
My daughter is a physical therapist, and she also coaches figure skating.
She thinks that all children should be evaluated by a physical therapist when they are young. The physical therapist would be able to find physical anomalies that have the potential to lead to injuries and disabilities as the child grows older, and most importantly, counsel the child and parents on ways to try to prevent the injuries.
E.g., many children have flat feet, and this can eventually lead to a whole host of painful conditions. Flat feet affect the alignment of the body, and eventually lead to a wearing down of the knees (osteoarthritis), which can lead to painful hips, etc. I can speak eloquently about this.
The answer to flat feet is to wear orthotics in the shoes. Obviously, a flip-flop generation doesn’t want to hear that, but even if the child can wear shoes with orthotics for more hours in each day, it will help.
Another answer is to NOT gain weight! I wish, wish WISH I had known what weight gain would do to my knees! It just makes sense, but back then, I didn’t even make the connection between weight and osteo! Stupid, stupid STUPID me!
So my suggestion to the OP is to not just assume that active children will incur more injuries, but instead, to make an appointment with a licensed physical therapist in a legitimate clinic, and get the boy evaluated. He may have some little thing that is causing him to incur the sprains, and you might be able to fix this. There are a lot of active children, and many of them never get a sprained ankle. Alarm bells are ringing in my head.
Another suggestion is to check out the coaching credentials of any sports teams that he is involved with. Make sure that the coach is qualified. This also includes school P.E. teachers. Yes, it will mark you as one of those “overinvolved helicopter parents,” and the coaches will bad-mouth you. Too bad. If they are qualified, they have nothing to fear and should welcome the opportunity to publicize their credentials. If they are faking it, then you will be doing everyone a favor to expose them.
She thinks that all children should be evaluated by a physical therapist when they are young. The physical therapist would be able to find physical anomalies that have the potential to lead to injuries and disabilities as the child grows older, and most importantly, counsel the child and parents on ways to try to prevent the injuries.
E.g., many children have flat feet, and this can eventually lead to a whole host of painful conditions. Flat feet affect the alignment of the body, and eventually lead to a wearing down of the knees (osteoarthritis), which can lead to painful hips, etc. I can speak eloquently about this.
The answer to flat feet is to wear orthotics in the shoes. Obviously, a flip-flop generation doesn’t want to hear that, but even if the child can wear shoes with orthotics for more hours in each day, it will help.
Another answer is to NOT gain weight! I wish, wish WISH I had known what weight gain would do to my knees! It just makes sense, but back then, I didn’t even make the connection between weight and osteo! Stupid, stupid STUPID me!
So my suggestion to the OP is to not just assume that active children will incur more injuries, but instead, to make an appointment with a licensed physical therapist in a legitimate clinic, and get the boy evaluated. He may have some little thing that is causing him to incur the sprains, and you might be able to fix this. There are a lot of active children, and many of them never get a sprained ankle. Alarm bells are ringing in my head.
Another suggestion is to check out the coaching credentials of any sports teams that he is involved with. Make sure that the coach is qualified. This also includes school P.E. teachers. Yes, it will mark you as one of those “overinvolved helicopter parents,” and the coaches will bad-mouth you. Too bad. If they are qualified, they have nothing to fear and should welcome the opportunity to publicize their credentials. If they are faking it, then you will be doing everyone a favor to expose them.
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EasterJoy
Guest
Asymptomatic flat feet usually are not treated, and do not necessarily make a person more prone to injury, as it turns out.
nytimes.com/1990/11/22/news/the-maligned-flat-foot-some-see-an-advantage.html
The Maligned Flat Foot: Some See an Advantage
By ELISABETH ROSENTHAL
Published: November 22, 1990
Ballet masters shun dancers with low arches and in slang “flat-footed” is synonymous with clumsy. In World War II, the military turned down thousands of recruits because they had flat feet.
For years, the flat-footed have been warned that their lives would be plagued with pain and injury and doctors have tried using surgery and braces to correct the “deformity.” But after decades of derision, new research is showing that flat feet are perfectly functional and may even be an advantage in sports.
In a 1989 study of more than 300 Army infantry trainees at Fort Benning Ga., those with flat feet had far fewer training injuries than recruits with normal or high insteps. In fact, trainees with high arches suffered twice as many injuries, including sprains and stress fractures, as their flat-footed comrades.
“Much of what we’ve believed about flat feet is mythology,” said Dr. Bruce H. Jones of the Army Institute of Environmental Medicine in Natick, Mass., and one of the study’s authors. “I’ve seen drill sergeants with arches as convex as the bottoms of rocking chairs, who are active and successful.”
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As for “qualified” coaches, at the elementary school level the coaches are usually other parents. It is up to the parents to monitor the medical and orthopedic needs of their little athletes.
That is not to say I’m against screening, but that treatments have changed. The OP’s child also is different because that child is* not* asymptomatic. Unless there is an easy explanation–such as a child who is constantly jumping off of things too high for him–injuries that recur frequently merit investigation. He could be entirely normal, but it is worth considering that he might profit if something in his post-injury care changed.
I’d probably let this particular injury go, but plan to get an evaluation by a specialist if the next one follows too soon after these. It would be a shame to do any permanent damage or to fail to catch a congenital condition before options in treatment started falling away. That is just me, though. The OP would do better to get the opinion of someone who knows some real medicine.
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