If there’s one thing that comes up a lot when talking about active kids, it’s that they’re pretty resilient compared to your average adult. A tweak at the knee can put your average 30-something out for weeks, but the same movement on a kid can usually be walked off without much issue. That being said, children can still get injured just like any other human being and injuries in little guys need to be taken just as seriously to ensure there are no complications down the line. Let’s take a moment today to discuss one of the most common pediatric injuries that I work on at Caruso Physical Therapy & Nutrition: Ankle Sprains!
What is an ankle sprain?
Most people have either had an ankle sprain or know a family member who had one, but to go over briefly, an ankle sprain is an injury in which a joint is overstretched to the point where the connective tissue becomes partially or completely torn. Ankle sprains are graded as 1, 2, or 3 depending on the degree of tearing that occurs.
- Grade 1 is a sprain with only partial damage to the fibers, but no larger scale tearing (these are fairly common in younger children during outdoor play).
- Grade 2 sprains are more severe with partial tears to the ligament and typically require more time to rest and recover compared to Grade 1.
- Grade 3 sprains are the most severe and are cases where the ligament completely tears through and require the most time to recover.
What comes next and how can therapy help?
These three grades may sound nasty, but there’s good news; all three can heal on their own with conservative therapy! If your kiddo twists their ankle a little worse than usual and is walking funny, the first step will always be to consult with an orthopedic doctor to determine the severity of the injury. Once cleared by a doctor, physical therapy will be a crucial component for a safe recovery regardless of the severity/grade of the sprain. Physical therapy treatment goals typically include:
- Reducing swelling
- Swelling is a normal and natural part of the healing process, but at the same time it can be very uncomfortable and can restrict your kid’s mobility, which can then in turn make them start walking with a limp.
- Swelling is usually at its worst right after prolonged walking/activity or later in the day.
- Before and after exercise, a physical therapist can use massage techniques to get excess fluid out of the ankle and allow better movement. This is typically short-term, but it can be helpful in that time to reduce pain and improve movement.
- Improving strength
- The body is very good at healing itself (especially for younger kids with their excellent metabolism), but joints need to be stable to make sure they’re able to heal themselves comfortably.
- Strengthening ankle muscles works two-fold!
- When muscles are strong and toned, they can act like a cast around the ankle so that any affected ligaments or connective tissue can effectively rest.
- Strengthening also makes it so that when your kid is ready to go back to play or sports, they’re not only ready to go, but also have less risk of reinjury.
- Improving balance
- Balance is sometimes overlooked, but it’s arguably even more important than normal strengthening.
- In order to keep balance, all of the muscles in your leg and core (large and small) need to work together to keep you upright and safe. That means that balance exercises are great workouts when trying to improve stability.
- Like any other exercise though, balance exercises can be unsafe to perform depending on the phase of recovery. This is where a physical therapist can help by identifying and prescribing the right movements at the right time.
Long Term Results
Ankle sprains are very common injuries, but can be scary for a child who’s experiencing them for the first time. Luckily for our injured kiddos, ankle sprains are nothing to worry about with proper care and a healthy child will have a good prognosis. A good therapist can work with your child to help train them to return to all their favorite sports and games and do so even stronger than before. The staff at Caruso Physical Therapy & Nutrition has seen our fair share of these injuries and are available to help out whenever you need us.
Dr. Richard Irace, PT, DPT
