Home » When to Seek Help: Signs You Should See a Doctor for Foot and Ankle Pain

When to Seek Help: Signs You Should See a Doctor for Foot and Ankle Pain

by Lara

The good news is that foot and ankle pain can often be relieved with self-care measures, and it may not always be necessary to see a doctor. In fact, many types of foot and ankle pain can be managed at home. However, if the pain is severe and there is obvious deformity of the foot or ankle, you should seek medical attention.

The first thing to do when you have foot and ankle pain is to try and find the cause. Think about what you were doing when the pain started and if there was any injury or activity that may be related to the pain. It is also important to know if the pain is the result of a single incident or if it has been getting gradually worse over time.

Foot and ankle pain is a common problem that can affect people of all ages. It is most often caused by an injury, such as a sprain or a fracture, or by a medical condition such as arthritis. The foot and ankle is made up of 26 bones, 33 joints, and more than 100 muscles, tendons, and ligaments, which explains why there are so many different things that can go wrong and cause pain.

Signs You Should See a Doctor for Foot Pain

I am guessing you maybe should see a doctor to get it checked out, but again I have a high pain tolerance. The first sign you should see a doctor, well a good doctor is if it doesn’t go away. I’ve heard foot pain from others that it stays and stays and they just live with it. Which brings us to the first sign: persistent pain. If the pain is still there after a week or two, it probably isn’t going to solve itself. If it’s a case of a flare up in a chronic condition, then it’s worth seeing your regular physician. But if it is in fact a new injury (or old one made worse, i.e. broken bone) and you’re determined to get the best possible treatment option, go straight to a podiatric physician. Far too many times have I seen and heard of people with new injuries waiting months and months to see something change, only to finally visit a professional and finding out that first off they should have seen them immediately and secondly that they’ve made the injury worse in the meantime. If it’s a new injury and you are seeking to see if a podiatrist can fix you up, it is wise to take note of how the injury occurred. This may seem obvious, but it often isn’t, especially for an acute injury. Writing down specifics like what you were doing at the time, what the exact movement was that caused the injury, what type of pain you felt, and if the pain came on immediately or gradually, are all things that we will ask you and will significantly help in diagnosing the issue.

Persistent pain

Persistent pain is a very general but important symptom of an ankle or foot problem. This typically means the problem has been present for more than a few days. There are different types of pain: sharp pain may be an indicator of a nerve problem, and a dull ache may be a sign of a chronic condition. These are both different from acute pain that you may feel as a result of an injury, for example, a fracture. Pain is your body’s way of signaling that something is not right. Do not ignore this signal. This is the most obvious reason that one would seek medical attention, and an accurate diagnosis is especially important because the underlying cause is what directs the proper treatment. Two people with ankle pain can have completely different diagnoses: one may have sustained a fracture that is not healing, and the other may have sustained an ankle sprain and has developed a mechanical impingement in the joint. In both cases, the pain may be located on the inside of the ankle, but it is of utmost importance to treat the correct cause of the pain. Failure to do so can lead to incorrect treatment and ultimately more damage and chronic pain in the future.

Swelling and redness

Redness and swelling in and around the ankle can be a sign of tendonitis. This is a condition that occurs when the tendons that connect the bone to the muscle become inflamed. This can happen from overusing a particular tendon during repeated movements such as walking, running or jumping. Redness and swelling accompanied by pain in that area may indicate a stress fracture. This is common to the second metatarsal of the foot in people with flat feet. In addition to a gradual onset of swelling, intense pain and sometimes bruising around the site may be a sign of a broken bone, and should be evaluated by a foot and ankle surgeon to determine the extent of the injury. A sprain is an injury to the ligaments around a joint. In a mild ankle sprain, a ligament is stretched too far and it causes some damage to the microscopic fibers that make up the ligament. This will cause some swelling and mild pain and the best way to manage this is by following the R.I.C.E. plan. If the pain or swelling is severe you should see your foot and ankle surgeon. Joint pain can be located around the big toe, in which case it may be hallux rigidus, a form of arthritis that limits movement of the joint and causes pain during push off. Extra growth of bone around the joint, or around the heel, may be a sign of Paget’s disease. Both are severe conditions and should be assessed by a foot and ankle surgeon.

Difficulty walking or bearing weight

This guideline can be difficult in some areas because of socioeconomic reasons. In some countries, the use of an assistive device such as a cane may be a sign of weakness or evoke pity. In those situations, individuals may ignore pain and forego necessary medical care. It is important to understand that maintaining the ability to walk is crucial to self-assurance and independence. A foot and ankle surgeon can customize therapy to allow a patient to keep the foremost level of mobility with the smallest change in lifestyle.

Sometimes, when people have been wounded, they will walk in a way that allows them to keep the weight off the tender area. If it doesn’t hurt at all to bear weight, this is unlikely to be a convincing reason for seeking medical help. However, if the individual is altering the way they walk or is guarding a foot or the ankle, it implies that the pain is severe enough that it is interfering with normal mobility. Since the ability to ambulate from one place to another is generally taken for granted, people frequently do not regard the problems that offset it to be severe. Nevertheless, the inability to mosey normally has implications on job and activities of daily living. Limitations in those areas will have a most important impact on overall quality of life. Failure to address a limp or altered gait because of foot pain can result in sturdy problems in the muscles and joints of other areas and may cause difficulties with balance, increasing the risk of falls and further wound. A foot and ankle surgeon can spot the cause of the difficult walking and develop a therapy plan to maintain the best mobility.

Signs You Should See a Doctor for Ankle Pain

Chronic or acute injuries to the ankle can result in instability or a sense of “giving way” in the ankle. If you feel that your ankle is unstable and may shift or give way during normal daily activities or when participating in sport, it is especially important to see a medical specialist. This feeling of instability could be due to stretched or torn ligaments or damage to the mechanoreceptors within the ankle joint. If left untreated, this may result in further injury to the ankle joint and surrounding structures.

When pain in the ankle persists beyond a few days, it is time to see a doctor. There are several “red flag” signals that could indicate a more serious problem. If you experience severe pain, swelling, and bruising around the ankle without any direct trauma, it could be a sign of a fracture. A stress fracture, though it causes less pain and swelling than a complete fracture, can also be a serious injury in need of assessment. If pain persists or worsens and affects your ability to bear weight, you should see a doctor. These could be signs of a more severe sprain. Any warmth, swelling, and sharp pain felt in the back of the heel may be a sign of inflammation in the tendons, possibly indicating a tear or degeneration. In addition, if pain and swelling do not subside with home treatment using the R.I.C.E. principle (Rest, Ice, Compression, Elevation), it is time to seek professional medical advice.

Severe pain after an injury

An injured foot can have many different symptoms that may vary in severity. Pain is the obvious symptom, however, you may experience pain originating from the joint when you bear weight on the foot (a sign of possible stress fracture). You may also have to change the way you walk or run due to pain, which can cause stress on other joints and possibly lead to pain and osteoarthritis. Swelling is often a delayed symptom and can be evident up to 6 hours after an injury. If you have apparent bruising on the foot/ankle, the bruising may track down into the toes by the law of gravity. If this occurs, it is possible that there is a fracture of the fibula and one of the tibia, which forms the ankle joint. This would require immediate medical attention. Always see a physician for a proper diagnosis of the injury as self-diagnosis has the potential to miss certain conditions and lead to long-term problems. If the injury is sports-related, it is vital to have a proper evaluation because it will affect future participation in that sport.

High impact exercises such as running and certain sports can sometimes cause a foot or ankle injury, and it can be difficult to determine the severity of the injury and whether or not it requires medical attention. There are roughly 25,000 sprains a day. Sprains are a very common foot/ankle injury and can be divided into 3 categories based on severity. These include Grade 1 – stretching of the ligament, Grade 2 – partial tear of the ligament, and Grade 3 – complete tear of the ligament. It is important to see a physician for a proper diagnosis of a damaged ligament because the symptoms of sprains may vary and it can lead to long-term ankle instability if not treated properly. Only 16% to 50% of individuals with chronic ankle instability seek medical treatment.

Instability or weakness in the ankle

Patients with either acute instability or chronic ankle instability often feel that their ankles are not strong enough to support their activities of daily living. Because of this, they feel that they have to avoid certain activities, leading to a sedentary lifestyle. This may lead to other health problems.

When you feel that your ankle is unstable and “gives way” repeatedly, chronic instability may exist. Pain or problems that happen again and again don’t right themselves and may affect the overall health of your joint. Unstable ankles may lead to continuous pain; however, some patients only feel that it is a bother or a nuisance.

Instability is often followed by episodes of your ankle “giving way.” When it becomes out of position with the rest of the body, such as when you are stepping off a curb or on an uneven surface, you feel a great degree of unease. Chronic ankle instability usually develops following an ankle sprain that has not adequately healed or was not rehabilitated completely.

Limited range of motion

You should have your doctor look at your ankle if you have suffered pain due to an injury. A doctor can assess the severity of the injury and provide an expected time frame for recovery. If an injury does not respond to treatment within the expected time frame, it is likely that some form of functional impairment exists. This is particularly important for people who need to perform at a high level in specific activities, e.g., an athlete. An impairment of function suggests a high probability of long-term disability and should be addressed with an intense treatment and rehabilitation strategy.

Rubin suggested that a joint with restricted range of motion is very likely to be a pain generator. Not only is pain likely to originate from a joint that moves too little or too much, but a painful restriction in mobility will adversely affect the surrounding soft tissues (muscle, ligament, tendons) and over time contribute to a higher level of pain. If a painful injury is left unattended and results in a joint permanently losing some of its range of motion, this can severely limit an individual’s functional capacity. When someone cannot perform basic tasks or participate in activities they enjoy, the likelihood of both psychological and physiological complications is very high.

Recurring or chronic ankle pain

The response to this type of pain can vary. Often people simply modify their activities to avoid the pain, thinking it will eventually go away. What they do not realize is that the pain usually comes back because they have not identified and solved the problem causing the pain. If an athlete’s level of competition or activity does not decrease, it is likely that he or she will develop additional problems from the original injury, such as weakened cartilage or scar tissue. A comprehensive medical examination, including imaging studies, can help determine the cause of the pain. The foot and ankle surgeon can then recommend treatment and rehabilitation to prevent the problem from worsening or to alleviate the pain. Oftentimes, surgery can be performed to remove the developed problems in the ankle, and in some cases, reconstruct the joint to correct the issue.

Recurring ankle pain can be a lingering and bothersome condition. While a patient often cannot recall a specific injury related to the pain, recurrent ankle pain can be caused by damage to the cartilage or softer tissues of the ankle. These problems can often be helped, so it is a good idea to consult a foot and ankle surgeon when any type of ankle pain occurs. Often the patient has a “giving way” sensation on the ankle, which may indicate a mechanical problem in the ankle joint. Instability, or the feeling that the ankle will give way, can be a chronic condition. Diagnosing the cause of chronic instability is often difficult and may require a foot and ankle surgeon to perform an in-depth examination and tests, possibly followed by surgery to correct the problem. A diagnosis is important because the cause of instability is what dictates the proper treatment to resolve the symptoms.

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