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Seeing as an estimated 25,000 ankle sprains occur per day in the United States, it’s no surprise that thousands of people each day are looking for ways to remedy their newly injured ankle. As an athletic trainer who has diagnosed and treated thousands of ankle injuries over the past thirty years, here is my step-by-step guide for what you should do when you sprain your ankle.

Diagnosing an Ankle Injury

It’s important to take a close look at your ankle immediately after the injury occurs since swelling and pain can make injury evaluation difficult several hours later when the joint is starting to get stiff and sore. Generally speaking, there are two types of ankle sprains that are diagnosed depending on where the injury is located on the ankle – the low ankle sprain and the high ankle sprain. In this post we are going to mainly discuss the low ankle sprain, but you can read more info on high ankle sprains here.

For the classic inversion ankle sprain the main site of pain and usually swelling is localized on the lateral/outside of the ankle. Alternatively, if you have suffered an eversion ankle sprain, the pain and swelling with occur mainly on the inside of the ankle.

Discomfort and pain is usually evident when the injured person tries to walk. Discoloration of the skin can occur from 24 to 48 hours after the injury, starting on the lateral side of the ankle then spreading with gravity.

If after 24 hours your pain is mild, you have little swelling and can walk on your ankle with little or no pain, it’s probably just a mild Grade 1 ankle sprain. If you have any severe pain or swelling you should consult with a medical professional as it’s possible you may have a Grade 2 or Grade 3 ankle sprain.

When to Seek Medical Attention

If you experience any of the items below it’s best to consult a medical professional:

  • If anything looks abnormal when compared to the opposite leg and ankle.
  • If you heard a popping sound when the injury occurred which may indicate a torn ligament or fracture.
  • If you can’t walk due to pain, or your ankle feels unstable when you stand.
  • If your injury shows no improvement after 3-4 days

Do you Have Access to a Certified Athletic Trainer?

If you are playing on a high school or collegiate team your school probably employs an athletic trainer. Even if you are playing on a club team you still probably know an athletic trainer that works at your school that could help you out. Athletic trainers have extensive knowledge in evaluating ankle injuries and can provide both treatment and rehabilitation protocols to get you back on your feet and return to activity.

Recovering from an Ankle Sprain

After one ankle injury, you are 70% more likely to sustain another ankle injury. The ankle joint is supported by ligaments and once these ligaments are stretched/torn due to an ankle sprain, they remain stretched. This causes the joint to become loose and unstable making yet another ankle injury much easier to obtain. In order to stop this mechanism of injury and help to prevent future ankle injuries, the proper steps must be taken to recover from an ankle sprain.

  • Seek Medical Attention if Needed – Failure to properly identify all possible damage to your ankle may lengthen healing time and cause more damage.
  • Move Early – Perform some gentle range of motion exercises right after injury help to improve functional outcomes and may decrease your return-to-play time.
  • Protect and Support ­– Wear the appropriate ankle brace support system until your injury has healed and you can evaluate your next steps.
  • Control Pain – Use the RICE (rest, ice, compression, elevation) method to help control pain in addition to anything recommended by your medical professional.
  • Strengthen – Perform any physical therapy exercises specifically prescribed to you as you recover from your injury.
  • Help Prevent Future Ankle Injuries – Even with strong muscles, perfect biomechanics, and great conditioning, ankle sprains are still possible and in some situations highly likely to occur. After spraining your ankle, the best way to prevent reoccurring ankle injuries and further damage to your ligaments is to wear a preventative ankle brace that is comfortable to wear and provides full range of motion. Lace-up ankle braces are not recommended due to their negative impact on strength and performance/range of motion.

When it comes to ankle sprains and injuries, every situation is different. The notes above should serve as a guide to helping you after you sprain your ankle but do not take the place of medical advice. Should you have any questions about specific ankle injuries or ankle braces please reach out to our certified athletic trainers or leave us a message in the comments below.

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Ankle injuries are the second most prevalent injury in soccer, only behind head/facial injuries. With so much emphasis on the foot and ankle in soccer, it’s no wonder the ankle takes a beating.

Most ankle sprains in soccer occur during running, cutting or tackling. A high percentage of ankle injuries occur from direct side to side contact, as opposed to a front or back contact. Regardless of the mechanism of injury, the result is usually the ankle turning excessively inward, stretching the ankle ligaments. How much the ligaments stretch or tear will determine the extent of the ankle injury.

Types of Soccer Ankle Sprains

Grade 1 Ankle Sprain

Involves the ligament(s) being stretched and is usually accompanied by some swelling and a little soreness. This is the mildest type of ankle injury.

Grade 2 Ankle Sprain

Involves the ligament(s) partially tearing. With a grade 2 ankle injury you will typically have swelling and discoloration and you may also experience weight bearing pain.

Grade 3 Ankle Sprain

The most severe type of sprain and involves a complete tear of the ligament(s). Swelling, discoloration, weight bearing pain, and some noticeable ankle instability are associated with this type of injury.

Regardless of the extent of the ankle injury, it is always recommended to seek out medical attention from an athletic trainer, physical therapist or physician.

Ankle Injury Recovery

Please consult your physician or athletic trainer before attempting any rehabilitation exercises. Your injury may be too severe to undertake these exercises and it is always best to err on the side of caution.

RICE is the common method used by athletic trainers, coaches, and parents everywhere to quickly treat mild injuries. Follow the RICE protocol below to treat mild injuries if you’ve decided to not immediately see a medical professional.

Rest – Decrease your activity so your ankle has time to start healing.

Ice – You can apply ice to your injured ankle in the following ways:

  • Ice in a plastic bag (Apply to the ankle for 20-25 minutes)
  • Ice made in a paper cup (Apply to the ankle for 8-10 minutes and rip off the top of the paper cup as the ice melts)
  • Immersion in ice water (5-10 minutes)

You should ice your ankle many times a day with at least 30 minutes between each ice application.

Compression – Compression helps to reduce swelling, so tightly wrap an elastic bandage around the ankle and loosen the wrap if it becomes uncomfortable.

Elevation – Elevate the ankle above the level of your heart to reduce blood flow to the area and help alleviate increased swelling.

Returning to Competition

Ankle ligaments are non-elastic which means once they have been stretched as the result of an injury the ankle will become more unstable and susceptible to yet another injury.  Before returning to competition it’s a good idea to seek out an ankle brace that can help prevent another ankle injury. Before you start your soccer ankle brace search, it’s extremely important to understand the different ankle brace designs and how they may affect ankle strength, range of motion and performance.

Some soccer players wear the lace-up style ankle supports primarily because they are low profile and upon initial impression they appear to provide good ankle support. Lace-ups became popular as a replacement for the ankle tape job, which loses 70% of its effectiveness during the first 20 minutes of activity. A lace-up is basically a corset that restricts all ankle range of motion which is not ideal when you are trying to keep the ankle strong and maximize performance.  Also, by restricting normal up and down ankle motion, the ankle works against the lace-up causing it to lose support rapidly

Rigid plastic ankle braces are another style of ankle brace.  These types of ankle braces have a hinge and allow free up and down ankle motion to maximize performance and keep the muscles strong.  They will provide much more ankle protection than the lace-up support because the brace moves with the ankle, not against it so the straps stay securely in place maintaining long last support.  The downside is because these braces are rigid they can be uncomfortable and bulky which soccer players typically do not like.

A third style of ankle brace that offers the performance aspect of the hinged brace with the softness and low profile of the lace-up is the Ultra Zoom.  The brace shell is made of an advanced flexible material called Performathane that uses body heat to custom-fit to the ankle.  The hinged-cuff design allows full ankle range of motion and the cuff helps to restrict excessive ankle turning and twisting which causes both low and high ankle sprains.

Regardless of which type of ankle injury prevention methods you use as a soccer player, safely competing at a high level should always be one of your top priorities. If you’re a player with a history of soccer ankle injuries and want to speak with one of our certified athletic trainers about your specific situation, give us a call or send us a message and we’d be happy to help.

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As an AT I work a lot of tournaments where I hear “Why am I injuring my ankle even though I wear an ankle brace?”  As all AT’s know, braces are designed to lessen the severity should an injury occur, but are you recommending the most effective ankle brace to help prevent those injuries?

Evaluating the most effective ankle brace starts with taking a look at it’s design and ability to provide long-lasting joint support. Any ankle brace can feel supportive when you first apply it, but what happens to that brace in 30 minutes? An hour? Is there any support left?  Here is a breakdown as to why some brace designs work well for long-lasting ankle support, while others fall short.

Do You Restrict Range of Motion? 

Let’s start with bracing principles of effective design. A brace that moves freely with the natural joint motion will always be more effective at providing long-lasting support compared to a brace that resists the natural range of motion of the joint. Why is this? If a brace works against (or restricts) the material movement of the joint, it will stretch out, migrate and shift causing the brace to lose support rapidly.

An example of an ankle brace that restricts normal joint ROM is the lace-up style. Lace-up ankle braces were first developed as a reusable tape job that the athlete could apply themselves. However, like a tape job, the lace-up loses a majority of its support in the first 15-20 minutes of activity. 

Do You Control Heel Movement?

As athletic trainers we were taught that if you can control heel movement, you can control the ankle. You might say “Wait, lace-ups that have a heel lock strap can control heel movement.” Which may be true for the first few minutes of activity, at which point the lace-up ankle brace begins to rapidly lose support. In theory it is true that if you can control heel movement then you can control the ankle, however it is unachievable with any ankle brace.

Do You Use Hinged Braces?

If you want to know what the most effective ankle brace design is at providing long-lasting ankle support, just take a look at the way knee braces are designed – with a hinge. When the brace is hinged and able to move with the joint, the straps stay securely in place maintaining long-lasting ankle support.  By moving with the joint, the brace is not only providing long-lasting support, but it also does not negatively affect athletic performance. 

Although hinged ankle braces are able to move with the joint, there are still some negatives associated with them. Because most hinged ankle braces are made with a rigid plastic, they are bulky and uncomfortable to wear for extended periods of time. They are also more susceptible to cracking and breaking due to material fatigue. Unlike older versions of rigid, hinged ankle braces, our low-profile Ultra Zoom ankle brace uses an advanced material called Performathane which uses body heat to form-fit to the ankle.  This new material overcomes the negatives of rigid hinged ankle braces by being form-fitting, flexible and extremely comfortable while providing the long-lasting ankle support only a hinge design can provide. 

Is Your Program Up to Date?

Maybe you’re already familiar with the best types of ankle braces for your athletes, but your program is in the habit of purchasing the same old lace-up style brace every year. As athletic trainers we usually want to try the brace out on our athletes before we commit to purchasing the product. You know that hinged ankle braces are better than lace-ups, but will your athletes wear them?

Regardless of your situation, I would love to correspond with you about your ankle bracing protocol and how Ultra Ankle can help improve the effectiveness of the ankle braces you recommend to your athletes – just send me a message.

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A few weeks ago I was watching a press conference with Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson who was commenting on how the ankle injury he sustained in the previous game was progressing.  When explaining his ankle situation the day after the injury he said the first thing he did was to take off the walking boot, because “You can’t play in a boot.” 

As athletic trainers we often use a walking boot to calm down a recently injured ankle, but we all know the sooner you transition out of a walking boot the better.  But the real question is, transition out of a walking boot to what?

What comes after wearing a walking boot is where athletic trainers earn their money.  The transition from the safety and security of a walking boot to the next phase of returning the athlete to competition is critical.  The ankle will need some sort of external ankle brace support because tape alone is not enough.  But what kind of ankle brace would provide a good transition from a walking boot? 

If the athlete has weight bearing pain, then you will need an ankle brace that unloads or offloads the ankle.  Meaning the brace will absorb most of the impact, not the sore ankle, thus reducing weight bearing pain.  Tape and lace-up supports have a soft bottom and cannot unload the ankle.  The ankle brace design that is the most efficient at unloading the ankle is a semi-rigid hinged-cuff ankle brace.  ‘Hinged-cuff’ means it’s a hinged ankle brace but with a cuff that encircles the posterior of the lower leg.  What makes this design the most effective is because you encircle the ankle/foot and lower leg in both the vertical and horizontal plane which provides a stable platform to absorb impact and control movement. 

Now that you solved the weight bearing pain issue, the next focus is providing sufficient ankle stability to secure the injured ankle and prevent further injury.  Yes, you can tape the ankle for stability, but tape loosens the longer you wear it.  We have ruled out lace-ups because they can’t unload the ankle.  Once again, a semi-rigid hinged-cuff ankle brace is the best option because it can provide more initial and long-lasting ankle support. Because the brace is hinged, it moves with normal ankle range of motion which keeps the straps securely in place maintaining long lasting ankle stabilization.  Every knee brace is designed upon that same principle.  Also, the cuff portion of the hinged-cuff design helps to restrict excessive ankle rotation which causes syndesmotic ankle injuries. 

To sum things up, when you come out of a boot it’s important to unload the ankle to reduce weight bearing pain and stabilize the lower leg and ankle to prevent further injury.  The hinged-cuff ankle brace design is the most effective when transitioning from a walking boot back to competition, because you can’t play in a walking boot.

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As a high impact sport, football players wear more protective gear than many other athletes. Players must protect themselves from injury by wearing the most advanced equipment from state-of-the art helmets, to breathable pads, all the way down to advanced ankle braces. Since the responsibility of each athlete varies greatly from position to position, some players are at a higher risk of ankle injuries and should be especially concerned with which ankle brace is best for football.

Football Positions that Should Wear an Ankle Brace

Unlike sports with a much higher ankle injury rate for every player, you’re not going to see the entire team wearing preventative ankle bracing in football – usually only the offensive and defensive linemen. The football players on the line are typically the most vulnerable for ankle injuries due to the fact that they quickly pivot and turn while other players are constantly falling on their legs/ankles.

Most of the ankle injuries suffered by linemen are high ankle sprains, which are more severe than a classic ankle sprain and can take twice as long to heal. Once an ankle sprain occurs, there is a 70% chance that the ankle will be re-sprained. With each ankle sprain the ankle ligaments become further and further stretched apart making the ankle joint more loose and unstable with each sprain.

Which Ankle Brace is Right for You?

For this reason, linemen have started to wear ankle braces to help prevent football ankle injuries or lessen the severity should an injury occur. For offensive/defensive linemen it’s not only crucial to keep their ankles healthy, but also to be able to get down in their stance comfortably while retaining their explosive power. To meet both of these expectations, the best ankle brace for this position would be a hinged brace with a flexible shell, such as the Ultra Zoom®, that custom fits to the ankle for maximum comfort and provides full range of motion.

Although linemen are the most susceptible to ankle injuries during play, many other players on the field may still be wearing an ankle brace – especially those with a history of ankle injuries or chronic ankle instability. In the case of chronic ankle instability, the athletes should wear an ankle brace that offers more long-lasting support than taping or a lace-up style support, such as the hinged-cuff Ultra High-5®, that can withstand the pounding of an entire football season while providing maximum protection to help prevent furthering injuring the joint.

Regardless of which position you may play, if you’re interested in learning more about if you should be wearing an ankle brace for football send us a message. Our certified athletic trainer would be happy to answer any of your questions and help you stay on the field all the way from two-a-days through the championship game.

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Even though they aren’t the most common ankle issue, acute ankle injuries tend to be discussed more among athletic trainers and sports medicine professionals since they can be the most damaging to an athlete and their career. But what about the most common, less-discussed ankle issue that is prevalent among today’s athletes both young and old? I’m talking about non-acute mild/moderate ankle instability.

Let’s say an athlete has a brief history of previous ligament injuries to the same ankle and they play a sport with a high incidence of ankle injuries, like basketball or volleyball. One goal as an athletic trainer would be to stop the cycle of ankle injury to prevent more severe problems down the road – but what are the best injury prevention methods for mild/moderate ankle instability?

After an ankle injury occurs, the standard next step for most athletic trainers is to implement a rehabilitation program customized to the injured athlete’s specific needs. Though stretching, strength-building, and proprioception exercises help to heal the ankle, it’s never back to 100% because the damaged ligament has lost some of its integrity (tightness) making reoccurring ankle injuries a distinct possibility. For that reason alone, it’s important to prevent ankle injuries before they even occur.

While we would love to share with you a long list of proven ways to prevent ankle injuries, the truth is that bracing the ankle joint is the most effective treatment method available. Once a rehab program is complete what is to stop a volleyball player from landing on another person’s shoe during a jump? A football player from being tackled and falling at the wrong angle? A basketball player from grabbing a rebound and landing on another player? It’s a split second movement that no amount of ankle strengthening can prevent.

With the goal of preventing another ankle injury in mind, the best treatment method for managing mild/moderate ankle instability is to brace the ankle. Bracing is going to provide more support than tape and for a longer period of time. Since we are not focusing on chronic ankle instability, the brace need not be super rigid and restrictive but instead be a lightweight, low-profile ankle brace that is comfortable to wear over long periods of time. A comfortable, long-lasting ankle brace would be the most effective method of treating mild/moderate ankle instability without restricting athletic performance.

If you’ve worked with athletes with mild/moderate ankle instability in the past, what are some of your go-to treatment and rehabilitation options? What methods do you feel have worked best and why? Let us know on our Facebook page, share with us on Twitter, or send us a message on our website.

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Here’s the scenario: a player goes down with an ankle injury. The athletic trainer brings the player back to the sidelines, takes off his or her shoe and sock and begins to tape the injured ankle.  After a roll of tape the player hops off the taping table to give it a try but is still hobbling around, unable to tolerate the pain.  Why? You just put the best tape job of your life on that ankle, it should be stable. Here’s the thing, it’s not the ankle instability that is causing the pain, it’s the impact. Tape alone cannot reduce weight-bearing impact. So what options do have to reduce impact – and the pain associated with it, thus allowing the player to return quickly, safely and relatively pain free to competition?

Reducing painful weight-bearing impact from acute ankle injury is the key to a quick return to activity. Tape can’t reduce ankle impact, lace-ups can’t reduce impact, any ankle brace that has a soft bottom or open heel section can’t reduce impact. You must use an ankle brace that “unloads” the ankle to reduce painful weight-bearing impact. Unloading means the ankle brace is absorbing the impact or energy, not the sore ankle.

To achieve maximum ankle unloading, the ankle brace must be made with a semi-rigid resin having a hinged cuff U-shaped design. The hinge is important because it allows the ankle brace to move with the ankle, staying securely in place maintaining long-lasting support. The cuff which wraps around the posterior lower leg is extremely important because it absorbs the impact and transfers that impact/energy to the lower leg. This technology is efficient in ankle unloading because it creates significant stabilization and support due to the U-shape semi-rigid design in both the vertical and horizontal planes.

At Ultra Ankle® we have developed two ankle bracing technologies that will unload the ankle. The Ultra High-5® is a hinged-cuff design that is recommended for chronic ankle instability and reoccurring joint pain. The Ultra CTS® is a hinged-cuff detachable shell design that is recommended for acute ankle injury treatment and rehabilitation. The Ultra CTS® provides maximum lower leg compression and stabilization with significant ankle unloading to reduce weight bearing pain. The Ultra CTS® is the ankle brace every athletic trainer should have available on game day.

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Ultra Zoom

Help prevent ankle injuries all season long.
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Reinforce the ankle after a history of multiple ankle injuries
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Ultra CTS

Maximize stabilization to treat acute ankle injuries
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