Recovering from Ankle Fracture

Okay, so it was only a very small fracture, but it hurt nonetheless.  I did this just over two months ago, and whilst the pain on and around the bone has gone, there is still some swelling, and I do have some discomfort up the side of my lower leg.  I assume that this is tendon or ligament damage, and although I have started running again, I'm a little bit concerned about the long term effects.

Should I just carry on, gradually increasing my mileage over the coming weeks, or do I need to do something dfferent - physio etc?   First run after injury was very slow as my foot and ankle were stiff but subsequent runs were much easier.

Any suggestions would be welcome?

Thanks

Need more details.  How was a fracture diagnosed, a fracture of what, why do you suspect ligament or tendon damage (which is it) and to what degree. 

 I've chipped my ankle bone on a few occasions as a result of going over on it, and in once case it recovered ok, but then the chip ended up in the joint years later, on another I didn't even know until several years later I'd chipped it and had run a marathon 8 days later with no issue.  On the other hand ligament damage has had me laid up since May and I'm recovering from the reconstruction operation at the start of October and not predicted to be running again until April, and that's with weekly physio from May and scheduled to continue through to April.

 So depends what you've done. 

Ouch!

The ankle was injured when I went over on it.  GP originally said no bone damage but after a week of increased swelling and bruising another GP sent me for an X-ray.  This revealed a slight fracture of the maleolus fibula.  Orthopaedic surgeon said that in view of the minor nature of the fracture it could be treated as a soft tissue injury but he gave me a splint which he said may help.  I used this sparingly for a couple of weeks, then two weeks later he said that the fracture appeared to have healed.  I now have no pain whatsoever on the ankle bone and assumed that the pains that I am now getting, periodically, up the outside of my lower leg, and around the ankle must be tendons or ligaments.  I guess the sensible thing to do would be to go back to see my GP but some are not always sympathetic towards recreational runners when they have ill people to deal with.

Millsy,

Not sure if this is of any help, but I also fractured my ankle nearly 12 weeks ago. I fractured my distal fibula, which is a non weight bearing bone, just below the ball of the ankle It was a non displaced fracture. Initially it was put in a cast, but upon assessment at the fracture clinic, the cast was taken off and I was given a foam boot to wear. 6 weeks later I get the all clear, but the doctor said it could be another 6 weeks or longer before the discomfort completely went away due to suspected ligament damage.

I have been running for about 4 weeks, gradually building the amount I am doing per week. My ankle still aches after runs, and I am wearing an ankle support when running. However, I feel my ankle is getting better and better each day, and plan to try running without the support next week.

My suggestion to you would be that if you feel it is getting better on it's own, then let it continue to heal by itself. Don't overdo the running though, and build it up very very gradually. If it isn't getting easier, or your not pain free in another 4 weeks time, then it might be worth a visit to your doctors at that point.

Be aware though that I have no medical qualifications, and this is only from personal experience.

Darren

Sounds like two pieces of good advice to me.

I don't think I've been injured as badly as you two have but even so I will need to get myself sorted.  I think that the best thing for me to do will be to keep running for another few weeks, building up gradually of course.  If everything appears okay, then so be it.  If not, then I will probably go to my GP and ask for further advice in terms of either giving it a little longer or getting some physio.  I know exactly what you both say about the limitations of dispensing advice over the web, particularly from those not medically trained, but I'm more than happy to use the experiences of fellow runners to help me decide what may be best for me.  

Thanks for your time!