Foot & Ankle Conditions

Foot and ankle trauma refers to the injuries that most commonly occur during sports, exercise or any other physical activity. Trauma may be a result of accidents, poor training practices or use of improper gear. Injuries may also be caused when an individual is not medically fit or because of insufficient warm up and stretching exercises.

A sprain is the stretching or tearing of ligaments, which connect adjacent bones and provide stability to a joint. An ankle sprain is a common injury that occurs when you suddenly fall or twist the ankle joint or when you land your foot in an awkward position after a jump. Most commonly it occurs when you participate in sports or when you jump or run on a surface that is irregular.

Shin splints or medial tibial stress syndrome (MTSS) is pain around the tibia or shinbone due to inflammation of the tendons, muscles and bone tissue. It occurs because of vigorous physical activity such as with exercise or sports.

The Achilles tendon is a strong, fibrous cord present behind the ankle that connects the calf muscles to the heel bone. It is used when you walk, run and jump. The Achilles tendon ruptures most often in athletes participating in sports that involve running, pivoting and jumping. Recreational sports that may cause Achilles rupture include tennis, football, basketball and gymnastics.

A stress fracture is a small crack in a bone which occurs from an overuse injury. It commonly develops in the weight-bearing bones of the lower leg and foot. When the muscles of the foot are overworked, or stressed they are unable to absorb the stress and transfer it onto the bone, which cracks under the pressure.

Ankle fractures occur from excessive rolling and twisting of the ankle, usually occurring from an accident or activities such as jumping or falling causing sudden stress to the joint.

The calcaneus or heel bone is a large bone found at the rear of the foot. A fracture is a break in a bone from trauma or various disease conditions.

Trauma and repeated stress can cause fractures in the foot. Extreme force is required to fracture the bones in the hind foot. The most common type of foot fracture is a stress fracture, which occurs when repeated activities produce small cracks in the bones.