Ankle Sprain & Injury Rehabilitation: Symptoms, Treatment & Recovery
Ankle Sprain
Symptoms: Pain, swelling, skin discoloration, joint stiffness.
Treatment: Application of ice, elevation, anti-inflammatories, protection of the injured joint, and rest.
Ankle Rehabilitation Phases
Stage 1: Initial Protection
Objective: Reduce pain, lower inflammation, protect injured ligaments.
Protection: Maintain a stable position for proper healing, limit scar tension for rapid and robust recovery.
- Rest: Avoid strenuous exercise to promote healing.
- Compression: Reduce swelling.
- Elevation: Control edema.
Stage 2: Movement Restoration
Objective: Increase ankle movement, increase muscle strength, facilitate local circulation, and eliminate inflammatory agents.
- Movements: Minimize inversion and eversion. Perform home mobility exercises.
Rehabilitation of the Spine
Back Pain
Pain location, assess functional range, muscle function, sensory movement, and position.
Examples:
- Lateral control
- Lateral deviation
- Leveled shoulders, lower hips, lateral static feet
Extension
Pain increases when lying down, sitting prone, and painful limited anterior inclination. Limited extension decreases pain.
Initial Pain Control
Treatment: Rest, careful positioning, analgesics, extension/flexion exercises, stretching, lateral correction, mobilization.
Example: Flexion – Pain increases in low-prone and supine positions. Tilt increases pain. The lordotic curve is not inverted. Extension increases pain.
Spinal Movement
Low pain, increased range of spinal muscle control, increased postural proprioception.
Stage II: Stabilization
Stabilize vertebral segments, increase muscle strength, and incorporate muscle stretching.
Muscle Tear
Ice, brace, ultrasound, electroanalgesia.
Therapeutic Exercises
Hip elevation, arm and leg elevation, hip extension, hip flexion, loft and side abduction.
Piriformis Syndrome
Buttock pain, lumbar pain.
Treatment: Ultherapy, electroanalgesia.
Axis
Hip internal rotation, knee flexion, hip lifting bridge.
Quadratus Lumborum Pain
Flank area and back side pain. Standing, coughing, walking, rotation, and inclination aggravate pain.
Treatment: Ultherapy, therapeutic exercises: hip elevation, supine hip, hip elevation, standing square elongation.
Hypermobility Syndrome
Isometric extension exercises, flexion to neutral, avoid hyperextension.
Column Flexion
Abduction: isometric, front elevation, and rotation. Use superior and inferior extremities.
Overtraining Syndrome
Symptoms and signs in an athlete who has exceeded their physiological and psychological capacity.
Physiological Symptoms
Poor performance, inability to achieve previously obtained performance, prolonged recovery, reduced tolerance to load, low muscle power, insomnia, appetite loss, amenorrhea, headache, nausea, muscle pain, muscle damage, loss of coordination.
Clinical Types
Sympathetic
Poor performance, irritability, sleep impairment, weight loss.
Parasympathetic
Poor performance, fatigue, depression, apathy.
Prevention & Treatment
Rest, relaxation techniques, proper nutrition, supplementation, massage.
Knee Injury
Medial Collateral Ligament (MCL)
Grades 1, 2, 3: Orthopedic treatment, return to activity in approximately 75 days.
Lateral Collateral Ligament (LCL)
Grades 1, 2: Orthopedic treatment. Grade 3: Surgical treatment, return to activity in approximately 3 months.
Posterior Cruciate Ligament (PCL) Injury
Partial: Orthopedic treatment. Total: Surgical treatment.
Acute PCL Injury
Orthopedic treatment: Grades 1, 2, 3: Extreme icing, prevent scar subluxation, quadriceps rehabilitation, progressive loading.
Chronic PCL Injury
Orthopedic treatment: Asymptomatic rupture. Quadriceps strengthening, modify activities.
Meniscal Injury
Torsion, rotation, joint line pain, mild effusion, pain with rotation.
Painful Shoulder Syndrome
Impingement/Rotator Cuff Disease
Mechanical compression caused by elevation of the arm, external support, external fall in abduction.
Primary Impingement
External and internal factors that cause conflict in the subacromial space.
Internal Factors
Anatomic variation of the acromion, degenerative changes in the acromioclavicular joint.
External Factors
Capsular stiffness, poor neuromuscular control, total or partial tear.
Secondary Impingement
Mechanical failure originating from hypermobility or instability, unidirectional instability caused by tissue trauma or capsular laxity.