Justin Bieber is in the news again. He claims that a hairline fraction in his ankle was to blame for his shaky behavior during a sobriety test at his previous DUI arrest. He’s been seen wearing a walking boot that I prescribe to my patients who have a broken foot and many other conditions. It seems like lately celebrities have been seen pushing through pain and discomfort and occasionally blaming bad behavior on a foot problem. I frequently put my patients in a walking boot for an ankle fracture, similar to the one worn by Justin Bieber. My usual recommendation is to take it easy even with a walking boot. You don’t want to be seen dancing around a stage with one.
Although some of my patients are older and have fractured their ankle due to a fall caused by balance problems, most frequently I see ankle fractures in my patients that are active in sports. Like Justin I’ve treated patients for ankle fractures as a result of skateboarding. Although skateboarding has a lot of young aficionados, I more commonly see ankle fractures in patients who run and play team sports.
3 Tips for Preventing Ankle Sprains and Fractures
Luckily there are several things you can do to avoid common sports injuries.
- Avoid irregular surfaces. It’s easy to twist an ankle and fall when you are unfamiliar terrain; stick to flatter surfaces.
- Buy new running shoes. See previous post about buying new shoes.
- Stretching. Extremely important particularly for those with tight calf muscles-- stretching can help prevent you from turning your foot into a position that could throw off your balance.
If you do incur a foot injury after following these tips, come in to see us at the Foot and Ankle Center of Lake City so we can evaluate what’s going on and help you on your way to healing. We can be reached for an appointment at 206-368-7000 or online.
