Symptoms

If an injury, e.g. a torn ligament or overstretching, is actually sustained when bending over, this can be a very painful matter. In the acute phase of the injury, the joint is painful and swollen. It can also be reddened.

Ruptured blood vessels can cause a more or less large hematoma, causing the ankle to be blue and swollen after a few days. This bruise is then typically located on the outside of the ankle joint just below the ankle. The occurrence with the affected foot hurts, but is still possible with pain.

If ligaments are torn or a more extensive ligament injury has occurred, the affected person feels unsteady and unstable on the foot. In very pronounced cases, a torn outer ligament can cause the joint to fold inwards beyond its natural extent. Pain on the outside of the foot is not necessarily typical after bending the foot.

However, as already mentioned, the skeleton of the foot is held together by taut ligaments which can tear under great stress. Not all of these ligaments hold bony components. Some also guide the tendons of the muscles that originate further up the leg.

These tendons can be subjected to great forces when they are bent. Torn ligaments on the outside of the foot can cause local pain there. In some cases, a so-called avulsion fracture (avulsion fracture) may occur.

A torn ligament tears off parts of the bone in which it is anchored. Damage to the nerves can also cause pain in the foot. The deep nerve of the calf, known in medical terminology as the nervus peroneus profundus, extends from the calf to the outside of the foot.

If the ankle joint swells after an injury, this nerve can become compressed in its course and cause pain and discomfort. A fracture of the fifth metatarsal could also cause pain on the outside of the foot.This injury, which is relatively rare in comparison, is more likely to occur in athletes in the context of chronic overloading. The most impressive pain and swelling after twisting the foot is usually in the ankle area.

Here, there are numerous bony structures, ligaments, tendons and nerves that can be damaged and cause discomfort. The distended ends of the tibia and fibula are the bony components of the ankle joint. Both bones are connected above the ankle joint by a tight connective tissue membrane, the Membrana interossea, and in the area of the ankle joint by strong ligaments, also called syndesmosis tibiofibularis.

When bending the foot, fractures can occur at different levels of the two lower leg bones. At the level of the ankle, a fracture is assessed according to the so-called Weber classification. This is called a Weber fracture and is divided into three localizations.

A fracture below the syndesmosis tibiofibularis, i.e. below the strong ligamentous connections, is called a Weber A fracture. If the bone is broken at the level of the syndesmosis, it is called a Weber-B fracture, and if the fracture is above the syndesmosis, it is called a Weber-C fracture. In the latter case, the membrana interossea is also torn in most cases.

Broken bones usually cause severe pain, malpositioning and swelling. An X-ray examination helps to investigate the suspicion of a fracture. In order to keep the bony structures of the ankle joint in shape and to give the tendons of the muscles their course, the individual components are fixed by strong ligaments.

These can be overstretched in the course of an injury, partially torn or completely torn. If the ligaments are stretched, the affected ankle joint usually swells up. Increasing pain in the ankle area is the result.

Torn ligaments are often accompanied by massive swelling and bruising. In any case, a doctor should be consulted. Important nerves and nerve branches of the lower leg and foot run in the area of the ankle.

These include the tibial nerve and the fibula nerves. As a result of bone fractures, damage can occur here, resulting in pain, loss of sensation and loss of function below the injury. Pain in the calf may well be due to a stretching or torn ligament.

They do not always have to occur immediately after the accident. Patients sometimes report slowly increasing calf pain even days after the injury has occurred. One of the reasons for this can be a permanent increase in the muscle tension of the calf muscles, which is caused by the pain in the ankle area and the involuntary relieving posture of the affected extremity.

However, increasing calf pain should always be presented to the treating physician, as it can also conceal a dangerous leg vein thrombosis. Symptoms such as redness, swelling and a feeling of pressure are also typical. Ankle joint injuries after twisting the foot usually result in swelling of the injured extremity.

Depending on the severity of the injury, this can be more or less severe. Typical is a slow increase in swelling, which also increases the pain. This is due to the fact that the anatomical structures in the area of the ankle joint have little space and the pressure on them increases with increasing swelling.

This leads to compression of muscles, blood vessels and nerves. This can cause pain later on or increase already existing pain. The injured person can try to keep the swelling down by immobilising, elevating and cooling the injured foot and applying compression bandages. In most cases, the increase in pain can thus be effectively prevented.