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  • Q&A with Australian Health Practitioners

    Should i put my whole foot on ground with one crutch?

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    I twisted my ankle to the right and it came back up and twisted it to the left
    To let you know I'm 12 and I don't really know if I sprained or broke it .and its been sooooo pain full every day it gets worse so like when I walk I barley can walk so painful!
    • 2 answers
    • Stuart Donaldson
    • Miss Loretta O'Sullivan-Pippia
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  • Stuart Donaldson

    Exercise Physiologist

    Accredited Exercise Physiologist with ESSA providing services to clients in the Hervey Bay region, including entitled DVA clients (Entitled Department of Veterans' Affairs clients may … View Profile

    Step 1: Go and see a doctor. If it is broken you'll need a cast. If it is just sprained, you'll need some physio/rehab to make it better to strengthen it again so there is no long term damage.
    In the meantime: Be pain free! Do whatever doesn't cause you pain. If you are unable to touch your foot to the ground without it causing pain, then don't. If you can touch part of your foot, then that is ok.

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    Miss Loretta O'Sullivan-Pippia

    Physiotherapist

    I am a specialist sports physiotherapist with a sub-speciality in adolescents in sport (as awarded bu the Australian College of Physiotherapists in 2007). In addition … View Profile

    Hi there, as Stuart said the first thing you need to do is get it checked out to make sure it is not fractured.

    You can see either a physiotherapist or a doctor for this. A physiotherapist, especially a sports physiotherapist, is expertly qualified in the diagnosis and treatment of sports injuries, including ankle injuries. You can go straight to your physiotherapist without a referral from a doctor and your physiotherapist can do tests to determine if it is likely that you have fractured your ankle and can write a referral for an Xray if needed. If it is fractured you will most likely need to go to the hospital and have a cast put on.

    If it is most likely that it is ‘not’ fractured and/or the Xrays come back clear, your physiotherapist can start treating your ankle straight away, start you on a rehab progam and will teach you how to use crutches (if you need them). So it makes sense to see your physotherapist first, rather than your GP, for any sports injury. Your physiotherapist would usually write to your GP letting them know about your injury.

    Generally with a sprained ankle you shoud be able to weight bear within a couple of days. If you can't it may mean you have a fracture or it may mean, especially in children and adolescents, that you are nervous or afraid to put weight through it as you are worried you will do more damage. Either way, if you are still in a lot of pain and still unable to walk without crutches, you should definately get it assessed properly by a physiotherapist - not putting weight through a mild to moderate ankle sprain can lead to other complications.

    Whether you should be non-weight bearing, partial weight bearing, full weight bearing, on 0,1 or 2 crutches, in a cast, boot, ankle brace or strapping will depend on your diagnosis and your physiotherapist will prescribe all these things after they have made the diagnosis.

    Bottom line, go see a physio straight away.

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