Help! My Child Sprained Their Ankle

Any sudden movement, misstep, or twist of the foot can cause an ankle sprain. Kids are especially vulnerable with all of the running and jumping they do. Though it’s not always a serious injury, a sprained ankle isn’t something you should ignore, especially when it affects your child.

If your child has a sprained ankle, our team of experts at Pro-Health Urgent Care of Midland, in Midland, Michigan, recommend scheduling a medical evaluation right away. If you can’t see your child’s doctor, we provide urgent care for these types of injuries. 

Early evaluation, diagnosis, and treatment can help your child heal faster and reduce the risk of future problems. Here, we cover what you need to do when you think your child has a sprained ankle.

Is it a sprained ankle?

Kids roll their ankles all the time and may not have any pain or problems. So, how do you know if your child has a sprained ankle?

An ankle sprain occurs when the ligaments that connect the bones in the ankle joint stretch beyond their limit. Overstretching may cause mild sprains or a complete tear of the tough connective tissue. 

Signs and symptoms of a sprained ankle vary depending on the severity of the injury, but a sprain typically causes:

• Immediate ankle pain
• Swelling and tenderness
• Difficulty walking on the injured ankle
• Bruising

The symptoms of a sprain are sudden and worsen over time. They’re also similar to what your child may experience if they fracture a bone in their ankle. This is one of the reasons you shouldn’t ignore this injury, you can’t always tell what’s really going on by observation alone.

At-home care

Your child hurt their ankle and you think it’s sprained. What do you do? Before you head to the office, have your child rest their ankle. You can’t “walk off” an ankle sprain. In fact, walking, running, or jumping with an injured ankle may make things worse.

We recommend using the RICE method to manage the injury until you get your child to the office. This refers to:

• Resting the ankle
• Icing the injury 
• Compressing the ankle with a bandage
• Elevating the leg

You can give your child over-the-counter (OTC) pain medication or an anti-inflammatory to help ease any discomfort.

Medical evaluation and treatment

When you arrive at our urgent care clinic, our team completes a thorough evaluation. We ask about your child’s injury and how it happened. We also take X-rays to make sure nothing is broken.

We recommend that your child continues using the RICE method to take care of the injury at home. Though rest is an important part of healing for a sprained ankle, your child needs to engage in gentle stretching and movements of the injured body part to prevent stiffness in the joint.

We provide a set of exercises for your child to follow. Depending on the severity of the sprain, it can take two or more weeks for the injury to heal. You should schedule an appointment with your child’s doctor or an orthopedic doctor for continued care.

Sprained ankles are common in kids, but they need a medical evaluation promptly so your child gets the right treatment to prevent more problems. For urgent care for injuries, contact Pro-Health Urgent Care of Midland.