I believe many people have had the painful experience of an ankle sprain. If you want to protect the ankle joint from re-injury, can you wear ankle protectors while running?

Sports-loving netizens on the Internet shared that after recovering from a sprain, although walking is no problem, the ankle will be slightly painful when running. Since running with an ankle brace, the ankle will no longer hurt; but some netizens say that wearing an ankle brace will restrict the ankle The range of activities for a short distance of 5 kilometers can be run, but the long-distance is sore.

Experts pointed out that the ankle will feel dull pain when running or playing. After the sprain is recovered, the ankle muscles and the proprioceptive receptors that affect balance are damaged. There is no rehabilitation and repair. At this time, wearing ankle braces does protect the ankle joints.

Effect.

Generally speaking, “ankle protectors” is usually used when the ankle is injured. It can reduce the swelling and pain, and maintain the ankle at a fixed angle and position, restrict the movement of the ankle joint, and prevent re-injury; the ankle support can also support the adjacent joints Muscles, ligaments, and other soft tissues allow the ankle joint to rest appropriately.

“However, the ankle brace is only a transitional assistive device for injuries, and it is not recommended for long-term use,” said Lin Gengde, a physiotherapist at Cathay Pacific Hospital. From the therapist’s point of view, muscles are always the best protective cover for joints. It is recommended that ankles have been injured. People in China need to train more ankle muscles, proprioception and use their muscles for support. This is the long-term way.

“The stronger the muscles, the stronger the protection,” Chen Jianhong, an orthopedic surgeon at Kaohsiung Rong General Tainan Branch, also pointed out that people who have been sprained without the proper rehabilitation can easily roll over again. Usually, they should exercise more muscle groups that protect the ankle joint, including the calf. The lateral peroneal longus, brevis, tibial anterior, and posterior tibial muscles.

The ankle brace is only a transitional assistive device when injured. It is not recommended for long-term use to avoid degeneration of the adjacent muscles of the ankle joint.

When to wear ankle protectors

Experts do not recommend that people with healthy ankles wear ankle protectors. If there is no injury, wearing an ankle brace will restrict the movement of the ankle joint and cannot rotate smoothly during exercise. “Not only will it affect sports performance, but the long-term wearing of the muscles near the ankle for a long time may also lead to muscle strength degradation,” Lin Gengde said.
Unless the type of exercise is to accelerate instantaneously, such as badminton, tennis, basketball, volleyball, and other ball sports, there are jerky, turning, and stopping movements, or when climbing on a rough and uneven road, you can temporarily wear ankle protectors to support the joints during sports games. , Prevent injuries, have a similar effect to sports patches.

Unexplained pain, numbness, weakness in ankle

Special attention should be paid to the inexplicable pain, numbness, weakness, and other uncomfortable symptoms in the ankle, which may not be the problem of the ankle bones or adjacent soft tissues.

“Unexplainable pain in the ankle may be caused by other parts of the disease. It is best to consult a doctor for evaluation by an orthopedic doctor.” Chen Jianhong pointed out. The doctor usually evaluates the neighboring knee joints, forefoot, midfoot, etc., whether there is a corresponding discomfort; in the past, there was a spine. Patients with medical history should pay more attention to whether there is neuropathy in the fourth and fifth lumbar vertebrae and the first sacral vertebra to avoid delaying the lesion.

【Rocker board】
Movement: After your feet stand firm, the feet are tilted upwards.

Exercise area: tibialis anterior muscle

【Standing exercises on one foot】
Action: Stand on one foot and bend the knees, draw a circle or straighten and bend the suspended foot in the air; you can also stand on a pillow or on an uneven surface to practice standing on one foot.

Advanced actions: Ankle stability is related to the mobility of knees and hip joints. Under the problem of no pain in the ankle, simple jumping actions can be practiced to integrate the linkage of the three joints of the lower limbs, such as one-legged standing jump three centimeters high, Jump up with left and right feet alternately, jumping forward and backward ten centimeters with both feet.

Efficacy: training balance ability