Ankle Dance Injury

[dancer4ever230]

I dance over 30 hours per week. Last year in December, I injured my left ankle. Before the injury, it never popped or anything. It hurt bad and was swollen often as well as showed a little bruising. I saw several doctors. One described to me part of the problem by folding his hands together so that his fingers were interlaced and so that his hands made a parallel line to the floor. He said that the ligaments should be like that. Then he pulled his hands away from each other so that i could see holes through his interlaced fingers. He said that that was what ligaments were like now. Another doctor said that it could have been a sprain but that I should rest it and that it could heal on its own. Another (my dance doctor) said that the ligaments were strained. I had an MRI done and nothing showed up. So, another dance doctor said that the pain was probably from the swelling fluids. The injury is on the outside of my left ankle. It goes around the joint, starting below the joint and curving around to the right and up about an inch or two above and two the right of the joint. It is significantly more swollen than my right ankle. I ice it after dance. It has been going on for a full year now. I am almost 15 and 116-118 lbs now. What could this be?

[dancer4ever230]

Thanks :)

[achilles2]

I feel for you, I am in the same boat. I injured my ankle fours years ago and I am still looking for answers. The two chiropractor that I have seen (one moved so I had to find another) both tell me that my ankle ligaments are very laxed and it is chronically sprained. I have had multiple MRI's, bone scans, and EMG's.

I just came across some research that said the only definite way to diagnose an ankle injury is through arthroscopic surgery. The arthroscopic surgery found problems wit the ligaments that the MRI's miss.
http://ajs.sagepub.com/content/33/5/686.short
http://ajs.sagepub.com/content/30/3/402.short

I am hoping to convince my doctor to think outside the box and either order some stress x-rays (you might want to ask for these yourself-- just google stress x-ray and you will found out more.), an arthrogram, or arthroscopic surgery.

I hope this helps,
achilles2