If you twisted your leg

Painful sensations and significant swelling in the ankle may indicate damage.

Hurry when walking, descending stairs or running on a slippery surface often leads to a person tucking his leg.

Often this happens even out of the blue. What to do, if sprained foot? However, does it hurt and become swollen?

Consequences of injury

• Sprain. Often appears due to the fact that the heel has turned upside down. With such an injury, a person can walk, but with a sensation of pain. It is necessary to treat it correctly. Then the damage passes without a trace after 2 weeks. You will find more information on the subject in the article “Ankle Sprain: First Aid and Treatment”.
• Ligament tear. It is an incomplete gap of several or one ligament at once. The joint becomes unstable, and the person who tucked his leg is in severe pain. Recovery can occur only after a month, if all treatment recommendations are made.
• Complete rupture of ligaments. With such an injury, it is almost impossible to stand on the foot, sharp pain immediately appears. In this case, the application of a plaster cast is required. If necessary, the doctor prescribes surgery. The recovery period can reach 2 months, we read in more detail in the publication: “What to do when the ligaments of the ankle joint are broken.”
• Ankle dislocation – a violation of the joint capsule. It will take at least 10 weeks to treat such an injury. Premature removal of gypsum can trigger the development of a disease such as a habitual dislocation of the ankle joint.
• Subluxation of the ankle. It suggests a slight displacement of the bones during an injury. Diagnosis of the degree of damage is possible only by x-ray.
• Bone fracture. Occurs when falling or jumping from a height. When landing, the foot is tucked, at the same time a blow occurs. The rehabilitation period after the fracture is about 6 weeks. In severe cases, it takes several months to treat an injury. You will find more information in the articles: “Ankle fracture: causes, symptoms, recovery methods” and “Ankle fracture”.

What to do?

So, there was an injury – he twisted his leg, it was swollen and sore. What to do in this case? Immediately check for ankle fracture by moving your fingers. If there is no acute pain, then there is no fracture. But contact a trauma specialist as soon as possible.

While medical care is not available, several important independent actions can be taken:

1. The ankle should be fixed immediately after the person tucked the limb. The easiest way to bandage the place that turned up. At the same time, it is not worth tightening the bandage so that the leg does not turn blue. You can make a bandage from anything (gauze, scarf, bandage or scarf). You should start from the middle of the foot, wrapping the bandage constantly across the foot. 2-3 layers is enough to fix the limb, how to do it correctly read in the article: “Fixing bandage on the ankle joint”;
2. It is recommended to apply a cold to the painful place where the leg is swollen. If you twisted your leg at home, then it is enough to take something cold from the freezer. If the injury occurred on the street, it is possible to wet the fabric with cold water. This is an effective measure of help in the first 2 hours after a person turned up a limb. At the same time, it is worth observing the intervals for applying cold: 10 minutes, then a break, 20 minutes, another break, then for several hours;
3. It is advisable to attach a limb on an elevation for normal blood supply;
4. If there are abrasions and wounds on the leg, they should definitely be treated with hydrogen peroxide and spread with greens;
5. Good helpers that help to heal a leg, if a person has turned it up, are gels and ointments that are sold in pharmacies. Among them are Troxevasin, Nurofen and many others.

After examination by a doctor

All of the funds listed are just first aid. It is imperative to consult a doctor. Only a traumatologist can not only determine the nature of the injury, but also prescribe the correct treatment.

After having twisted a leg, it is necessary to get to the traumatologist as soon as possible. As soon as the doctor conducts an examination, makes an X-ray and makes a diagnosis, it is necessary to start doing everything according to the treatment plan.

Usually it includes:

1. taking medication;
2. physiotherapeutic procedures.

In difficult cases, it is necessary to treat the leg in a hospital under the close supervision of doctors.

No fracture? Then the doctor will recommend treatment at home.

In this case, you can do the following procedures:

• if the limb is swollen and sore, you need to do foot baths with the addition of sea salt several times a day (you can buy it at any pharmacy). The water temperature should not be higher than 36 degrees. The course of procedures should last about 10 days. In water, the injured leg must be kept for 10 minutes.
• effective are folk recipes. So, you can make compresses from burdock, cabbage leaves or aloe juice. Such remedies will help to effectively reduce the swelling.
• It is important to leave your foot alone. If you turned up a limb, then during the entire rehabilitation period it is necessary to remove the load from it.

By following these simple rules, you can recover more quickly from injury.

After recovery

After recovery, you need to take care of your leg. It will require a careful attitude. After all, if once she twisted her leg, the ligaments will remain stretched or slightly torn. And this will make the affected limb prone to further injuries. In addition, there will be a fear of tucking your leg again. After all, there is no desire for her to swell again and begin to hurt.

To prevent this from happening, it is recommended:

1. Exclude wearing high heels. Yes, and a flat sole can also harm the leg. Therefore, it is recommended to wear shoes, boots, boots with a small and stable heel;
2. The ankle and ligaments must be carefully strengthened. This can be done using special exercises. Just 15 minutes a day will be enough. You can take turns walking around the house in different ways: on the inside, and then on the outside of the foot, on the heels, then on the toes. Walking on sand, grass or pebbles in the summer will be useful. Of course, they need to be implemented barefoot.
3. Massage is a good way to improve your legs. You can carry out self-massage in the area where there was an injury. It is advisable to do the procedure at night. Massage is recommended not only to those who constantly tuck their limbs, but also to all people who are over 40 years old. Indeed, over the years, bones, muscles and ligaments weaken, lose their strength and elasticity.

Strongly twisted the leg, that it was swollen, and there was pain? You just need to see a doctor immediately. Then no complications will arise, and the treatment will be as quick and comfortable as possible. In the future, you should just take care of your legs and constantly take care of their health.