Lateral Ligament Reconstruction/Sprained Ankle

Sprained ankles are a common injury that affects people of all ages, and the severity of the injury ranges greatly, from mild to severe. Before we look at your treatment options, let’s examine your ankle, and define exactly what happens when you sprain it.

Your ankle is actually a complex intersection of bones, that includes two joints. Here, your lower leg bones (tibia and fibula) meet with your talus bone, which sits on top of your heel bone (calcaneus). They’re all held together by a series of ligaments, tendons, muscles, nerves, and more, such as your Achilles, and the talofibular.

Among these are lateral ligaments that help you turn your foot. When you fall or twist your foot unexpectedly, these ligaments can become partially or completely torn, and you have a sprain.

You’ve probably seen the symptoms before. They include swelling, bruising, tenderness to touch, or simple instability when you try to walk.

Usually, a sprained ankle will heal on its own. Resting it, icing it, using compression to immobilize it, or elevating it can all be helpful. You might also try medicine, crutches, immobilization, or physical therapy.

While surgery is rarely needed, however, you could require lateral ligament reconstruction. In this case, your doctor would actually tightening or reconstruct the lateral ligaments to aid in the stability of the ankle.

Recovery from lateral ligament reconstruction is lengthy with most athletes returning to sport in 4-6 months