Sprained Ankle not better after 5 months

[cloudnyn3]

Ok so if anyone could point me in the right direction or perhaps help me out a little I'd greatly appreciate. I'm VERY broke and cannot afford to jump around from doctor to doctor right now and I want to make sure I goto the right doctor first without being passed around racking up charges =)

On january 1st 2011 I fell off of a flight of stairs and straight down on to my ankle. It rolled but I had falled about 3 feet straight down on to it and my whole body collapsed on to it after I rolled it. I was in absolute and utter pain. Everyone that looked at it was sure it was broken because it was massively swollen. I went to the ER the next morning and even the X-ray tech said it looked broken or dislocated. X-rays said negative though, the doc that looked at it said it was probably a severe Grade 1 sprain I should stay off of it for about a week  and then try to use it to build it back up to strength. Did exactly that. I slowly managed to start walking on it again but now I can't even run and its been 5 months. My problem isn't that I can't put weight on it, because I can. I can put a lot of weight on it. My problem is when I make the motion to point my toes or to rotate it, it cannot fully move and it hurts alot and often times makes it alot harder to walk If i attempt to strain it. If I try to bounce on my toes the same thing happens. I've waited weeks at a time to see if it will get better and it just stays at the same moderately inflammatory state and stays at about the same pain level when walking. The pain feels like its coming from the inside of my ankle joint, mostly on the inner area of the ankle and toward the back.

If anyone could perhaps give me an idea of waht this could be or waht I should do, I'd really appreciate it! Thank you

[PedroH]

Your symptoms just sound so much like my own-that's why I suggested the injury to your talus.Is it possible that you might be able to go to a university hosp.or clinic?Often times because it's a "learning hospital" the cost is minimal or they will work ith you.Not to mention,because so many people are looking at you, diagnosis is often better. Good luck to you!

[cloudnyn3]

I'll probably just have to pay the money to have it looked at.... I can walk now and it doesn't really bother me too extremely bad but I cannot run and I don't have full movement. Its slowly getting better... VERY SLOWLY but I can kind of jog but its not a natural movement at all and I really want to make sure that I can eventually walk and run normally.

[PedroH]

Hi there! I'm afraid one way or another you will have to spend some money.It is possible that you have injured your talus.I broke my tib/fib in a few places,had 3 surgeries& it took a CT scan to tell I had injured my talus.I keep telling them I had pain deep in my ankle from day one &they kept dismissing it-now,2and a half years later I am having to deal with it. Maybe you could simply ask your Dr.if this is possible before any scans are done.Good luck to you!

[achilles2]

I am sorry you are in so much pain.I had had foot/ankle pain for two plus years without answers. I even went to the pain clinic at a teaching hospital and saw all the different specialist one could see without any answers. Then a fried recommend a chiropractor for my ankle/foot pain.He was the one that found was wrong (without all the expensive tests I had already had). He found I had a chronically sprain ankle. Before I saw him I was using crutches on and off for those 2 plus years, and had tried different pain meds. Now I do not even think about using crutches and I am off all my pain meds.

Today I was even able to stand for 3 hours on a concrete floor without pain.

I hope this helps,
achilles2