Ankle/heel injury question???

slsh

member since 1999
Diva was complaining of heel/arch/ankle pain for about 2 weeks. Being Drama Diva, I kind of blew it off. I did look repeatedly at the foot - no redness, no swelling. Last Friday after continuous complaining I took her into pediatrician, who diagnosed torn/strained ligament or tendon (x-ray was negative for fracture, but this particular hospital has not got the brightest radiologists) She's been on crutches since - not in a cast or boot but a brace that I (gently) Ace wrap on her.

So tonight, she takes the Ace off and says "ewwww, a fat foot". So now it's seriously swollen up to above the ankle. No bruising but even the sole of her foot is swollen. Foot is warm and sensation is okay. She's still complaining of pain in same area, no improvement.

I'm calling pediatrician in the morning but am moderately freaking out. Does this sound like a strain/torn ligament? Would it not be rather bizarre for swelling to occur 3+ weeks after the original injury? Do I just head straight for ortho doctor?
 

everywoman

Well-Known Member
I vote ortho. difficult child broke a small bone in his foot in middle school. He didn't bother to tell me because he had a hockey tournament coming up. He wore his flip/flops and walked on the inside of his foot for over 10 days---played in the tournament, then went to the school nurse to complain the next week at school. Of course, it was broken and had to be cast. And I felt like a lousy mom.
 

nvts

Active Member
Hi! I have an "interstitial tear" of my achilles tendon. It flares up now and again and if I wrap it, it does what your daughters is doing. Go to the ortho because they'll do an MRI and you'll get way more info.

I opted to skip the surgery because it would have me immobile for 8 weeks in a full cast and then another 8 weeks in a soft cast - the difficult child's would have full run - I'm not that kind o' fool!!!

Hope she feels better!

Beth
 

smallworld

Moderator
Straight to the ortho! You absolutely need to find out what's going on. Kids can sustain growth-plate fractures that don't show up on X-rays. In addition, foot/ankle soft-tissue injuries can be serious and ultimately affect the function of your foot.

My own heel/arch/ankle injury turned out to be a torn Posterior Tibial Tendon (runs from the arch up the inside of the ankle). I've been limping around since February and face surgery in the fall (because I can't fit it in this summer).

Hang in there. Let us know what happens.
 

Abbey

Spork Queen
I shattered my left foot a few years back. 22 bones and a large split in the heal. The bones actually healed quite quickly, but the heal never fused correctly. To this day I walk with a limp from that darn heal.

Moral of the story? Definetely go orth.

Abbey
 

Lothlorien

Active Member
Abbey, I bruised my heel bone (or may have even fractured it at the time. No one took me for x-rays). I was 11 or 12 when it happened and it took months and months for it to feel better.

I also tore the fascia (or husband did when he stepped on the back of my sandal). No swelling, but the amount of pain I had was incredible. Again, that took a long time to heal.
 

slsh

member since 1999
Thanks, ladies. pediatrician ortho it is. Her foot is still swollen this morning. Worry worry worry.

Loth - she hasn't been on antibiotics (or anything else) in probably a couple of years, knock wood. Healthy kid.
 

slsh

member since 1999
OK - she's got Sever's disease in her heel, caused by growth plates in heel growing faster than the heel cord tendon. Most common in active kids, and Diva does it all - cheerleading, softball, volleyball, basketball - just everything. Hindsight being 20/20, she started complaining of heel pain last fall during softball conditioning camp. We (accidentally) did the right thing by going out and buying her a really good pair of athletic shoes.

She also has an accessory navicular bone (an extra bone, right above the arch area) and apparently strained/irritated the posterior tibial tendon which is further being aggravated by the accessory navicular - or something like that.

She's in a boot for 4 weeks, crutches only if she needs them for pain. If she's pain free, or at least much better, in 4 weeks we can look at braces and supports to deal with- the Sever's and the arch. The Sever's is self-limiting and should be done around the time she hits 16. The navicular thing is addressed using supports and braces for the most part. Interesting tidbit - the accessory navicular bone is a congenital anomaly, more common in girls than boys.

Oh, and the swelling? Caused by her idiot mother. Sigh. Apparently when applying ACE wraps to ankles, you start on the toe end and wrap up the leg towards the knee. No figure 8's. Any variation in tension if you do a figure 8 causes the swelling. :hammer: I was being so careful to apply the ACE just right - not too tight - but apparently it's quite an art. More fodder for her future therapy sessions.

All in all, she's okay - just is going to have to pay attention to foot mechanics and supports.
 

AnnieO

Shooting from the Hip
Well, that's good/bad news... And yes, there is an art to wrapping an elastic bandage. I was lucky and learned in a sports medicine class in HS - but difficult child 1 used to complain whenever she wore one that it hurt, ended up swelling, etc. BM taught her how. BM is an STNA. I taught difficult child 1 how to do it properly and no more problems.

BUT, the boot is great. Tore my achilles tendon a couple of years ago and OWWWWW when it flares up. But there are exercises for that.
 
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