Is Your Ankle Acting Up? Signs You Have Chronic Instability

When you think of how your body is designed, it’s not difficult to appreciate the role of the ankle. Your ankles support your entire body and interface with your feet to move you from one place to another. 

Most of the time, it’s easy to take your ankles for granted. However, as you get older, previous injuries and encroaching arthritis can conspire to create a condition called ankle instability. 

Because your ankles are always active, ankle instability can become chronic. At Hudson Valley Foot Associates in  Kingston, New Windsor, Wappingers Falls, Hudson, Red Hook, Margaretville, and West Coxsackie, New York, we’re here to help with all your heel and ankle problems. 

Causes of ankle instability

Ankle sprains are a leading cause of ankle instability, particularly if you have repeated injuries where you stretch ligaments that have the function of providing stability. If these ligaments don’t heal correctly, they may become too long to provide sufficient support to the ankle, potentially leading to further injuries. 

Other injuries and arthritic conditions can also contribute to ankle instability as the years and wear-and-tear add up. It’s possible to develop chronic ankle instability without a current ankle condition or injury. 

Signs you have chronic ankle instability

The primary symptom of ankle instability is the feeling that your ankle simply gives out, rolling your foot onto its outside edge, the same motion that typically causes ankle sprain injuries. As instability worsens, these outward rolls occur more frequently. 

Ankle instability becomes chronic when symptoms persist for months without showing signs of improvement.  Pain usually presents on the outside of the ankle. It can range from a dull ache to sharp, stabbing pain. 

Other symptoms of chronic ankle instability include: 

• Stiffness: your ankle may seem stiff with a limited range of motion
• Swelling: inflammation and puffiness around the ankle
• Lack of confidence in your ankle’s ability to support you
• Some activities or movements may be more difficult
• Changed gait: you walk differently because of the ankle
• General weakness in the ankle, foot, and lower leg
• Feelings or sounds like pops and clicks associated with ankle movement

Instability may be a feeling of imminent failure, or you may actually roll your foot over the outer edge more frequently. 

Treating chronic ankle instability

Treating ankle instability usually starts with conservative treatments, provided there’s no ligament damage that can only be dealt with surgically. Conservative treatments include: 

• Ankle support strategies: bracing, taping, supportive footwear
• Joint mobilization therapy
• Compression
• Hot and cold therapy
• Physical therapy
• Over-the-counter and prescription medications to manage discomfort

When these modalities fail to provide sufficient relief, we may recommend surgical procedures to lengthen or strengthen ankle ligaments, thereby restoring ankle stability. 

Discover more about the solutions for your chronic instability issue by contacting the nearest location of Hudson Valley Foot Associates. Call or click to book your appointment today.