Quick! What do you do when you’ve injured your foot or ankle? Do you shake it off? Put some ice on it? Rush off to the emergency room?
Well, let’s start with the type of injury you’ve got and how severe it is. Many injuries, including falls, trips, sprains, bruises, and sports injuries tend to be mild or moderate. In most cases, if you can tolerate the pain or the pain comes and goes, you may not need emergency medical attention. Instead, you may be able to use the RICE method to keep symptoms at bay. Read on to learn more about the first step of treatment after a foot or ankle injury.
(Of course, if you’re not sure, or if symptoms do not get better in a few days, it’s best to seek medical attention.)
What is the RICE method? R = Rest, I = Ice, C = Compression, E = Elevation
After an injury, you may experience pain, redness, bruising, and/or swelling. To keep these symptoms at bay, use the RICE method. You’ll want to REST by stopping what you’re doing and waiting until you heal to get back into walking, running, or playing a sport. If you get back to using your injured foot or ankle too soon, you risk re-injuring it or making things worse. Better to miss out a little now, than to worsen the injury and require more treatment later.
ICING the injury can help reduce pain and swelling. Apply a cold compress to the injury for 15 minutes at a time to get the best results.
Additionally, if you use COMPRESSION socks or bandages around the impacted area, you can prevent excessive swelling as the body tries to protect the injured foot or ankle. It can promote healing by allowing for healthy circulation of blood and fluids.
Finally, whenever you can, ELEVATE the injured body part, also to promote circulation and reduce excessive swelling. If possible, raise the foot or ankle above heart level when you are lying down, and propped up a bit when sitting.
An injury doesn’t have to make you stop everything – but you should listen to your body and slow down. If you need better shoes or orthotics to support your feet, or if your mild injury seems to feel worse even when you apply RICE, make an appointment to come see us. Call Crofton Podiatry at (410) 721-4505 to see our board-certified podiatrist, Dr. Brad Toll. He can assess your injury and prescribe the proper treatment. Our team is ready to assist you at our Crofton, MD office, which also serves the surrounding Gambrills, Odenton, and Bowie, MD areas.