Will my ankle ever be the same after a break?

If it's a low-to-medium grade ligament injury or a stable bone fracture, then it's highly likely that the ankle will be similar to before. With more severe ligaments and unstable fractures, there is always some difference in flexibility and appearance.

Can you recover fully from a broken ankle?

Depending on the severity of your foot and/or ankle fracture, it can take anywhere from several weeks to several months to fully recover. Speak with your doctor about what recovery may mean for you. Healing takes time, and even after the pain wears off it is important to take it easy.

What are the long term effects of a broken ankle?

Long term effects of ankle fractures have been reported to include physical, psychological, and social consequences [9]. It has been reported that physical impairments following ankle fractures may include pain, functional impairment and the development of post-trauma arthritis [16].

Will my broken ankle ever stop hurting?

After about a week or two, the worst pain is usually over. What happens next is that the fractured bone and the surrounding soft tissue begin to heal. This takes a couple of weeks and the pain you might experience during this stage is called subacute pain. The last stage of pain is chronic pain.

How long does it take for a broken ankle to feel normal?

A broken ankle usually takes 6 to 8 weeks to heal, but it can take longer. The doctor will tell you: how long you'll have to wear the boot or have the plaster cast on. how much weight to put on your ankle – you may be given crutches or a walking frame to help keep weight off it.

Will my ankle ever be the same after a break?

Why does my broken ankle still hurt after a year?

If your ankle starts to hurt long after a break, see your doctor for an evaluation. Bone infection (osteomyelitis). If you have an open fracture, meaning one end of the bone protrudes through the skin, your bone may be exposed to bacteria that cause infection. Compartment syndrome.

How long does an ankle stay swollen after a break?

The foot and ankle become swollen, painful and can no longer hold any weight. It takes several days or weeks for the swelling to go down completely, and can take months for the ankle joint to fully recover from the fracture.

Is a bone completely healed when a cast comes off?

During this “remodeling”, the body can straighten the fractured bone by laying new bone on the inside edge, and taking away bone on the outside of the angled area. In young children, bones can remodel fairly large angles, healing to appear completely normal within one to two years.

Can a healed fracture break again?

There is no evidence that a broken bone will grow back stronger than it was before once it has healed. Although there may be a brief time when the fracture site is stronger, this is fleeting, and healed bones are capable of breaking again anywhere, including at the previous fracture site.

What bone takes the longest to heal?

The femur — your thigh bone — is the largest and strongest bone in your body. When the femur breaks, it takes a long time to heal.

How long does it take to walk again after a broken ankle?

If you don't need surgery, you might be able to walk on your own within six to eight weeks. If your fracture did require surgery, you may get a walking cast after two weeks; four to six weeks later, you may be able to apply some weight and be moved to a cast with a walker or crutches.

Does a broken ankle make you tired?

A serious injury leads to more mental and physical exhaustion that one might be prepared for. So if you are tired, don't feel guilty or confused as to why you are; instead, keep in mind that the fatigue is related to the stress of a new injury. Your body will need time to repair.

What is the mental impact of a broken bone?

Psychological sequelae are common after long bone fractures and include post-traumatic stress disorder, depression and anxiety. Depression is common following injury and may adversely affect clinical outcomes.

What is worse a fracture or a break?

There's no difference between a fracture and a break. A fracture is any loss of continuity of the bone.

Can you run with plates and screws in ankle?

In general, you can attempt to start running about three to four months after your injury. By this time, the bones in your ankle should be well healed and your ROM and strength should be close to normal. You can progress your running mileage as long as your pain is minimal and your ROM and strength remain excellent.

Do bones get weaker after they break?

But, the rest of the bone surrounding the break site actually demineralizes because of inactivity (since you're probably in a cast). So the bone overall weakens during the healing process.

Can you break the same ankle twice?

There is an old adage that states you can't break the same bone twice because the bone grows back stronger than before. Unfortunately, this is a myth. There is still a chance you can fracture it again in the same place in the future.

Does bone grow back after fracture?

But in the majority of cases, bone makes use of its remarkable ability to regenerate. This means that the new bone that fills the fracture closely resembles the bone before the injury, without a trace of a scar.

What happens after cast is removed from broken ankle?

After having a cast removed, it is normal to experience pain, stiffness and decreased range of motion in the area(s) that were immobilized. Symptoms can last up to twice the amount of immobilization time. For Example, if the patient was in a cast for 3-4 weeks, symptoms may last up to 6-8 weeks.

Do broken bones heal stronger or weaker?

Once your broken bone heals fully, it should be just as strong as the rest of your bones, so you won't be more or less likely to break it than another bone.

Does itching mean a broken bone is healing?

As the broken toe is healing, it might start to itch. This is due to your body releasing histamines to the area during the inflammatory phase of healing.

Why is my ankle still swollen after a year?

"An ankle sprain that lingers beyond 3 months is often an injury to a bone, tendon or ligament that is unlikely to heal without intervention," he says. "And the longer an ankle injury persists without proper treatment, the greater the likelihood that permanent disability will result."

Why won't my ankle swelling go down?

Lingering inflammation, scar tissue, or a partly torn ligament can occur in the hollow place in the side of the anklebone called the sinus tarsi (sinus in Latin means hollow or sunken and the tarsus is the ankle). This is the most common cause of the sprained ankle that won't heal.

How do you get rid of stiffness after ankle surgery?

Wrap a bag of ice in a wet tea-towel and put this on your ankle for 15 minutes. Stiffness: It is important to try and get as much movement as possible in your ankle after the fracture has healed. Exercising and help to reduce stiffness.