The vast majority of Americans have sprained or broken their ankle at some point in their life, and new research suggests that these injuries may have some hidden health effects long after the injury appears to have healed.
For their study, researchers surveyed thousands of adults about their overall health and history of ankle sprains. After looking at the data, researchers uncovered that adults who have injured their ankles tended to have higher rates of disability, arthritis, heart conditions and respiratory problems.
“What is concerning is these differences are presenting across the life span — especially during the critical middle age years when our risk for these diseases begins to increase,” said study author Phillip Gribble.
Ankle Study Results
Gribble’s team looked at data of more than 3,500 adults. More than 1,800 respondents noted that they had suffered some sort of ankle injury at one point in their lives. All respondents were also asked about their daily activities, and those who stated they had suffered an ankle injury in the past were more likely to say that their daily activities have been “somewhat” or “completely” limited. They also had higher rates of moderate to severe body pain than those who hadn’t dealt with an ankle injury in their lives.
Other findings from the study include:
- Elevated rates of heart or respiratory ailments in people who had injured their ankle versus those who hadn’t (31 percent versus 24.5 percent).
- Not surprisingly, those in who had suffered an ankle sprain in the past were much more likely to suffer from ankle arthritis (9.4 percent versus 1.8 percent) than those who hadn’t.
Gribbe’s team noted that the results didn’t prove causation, but they concluded that the findings suggest that ankle sprains and breaks should be taken more seriously.
“In isolation, ankle injuries are seen as relatively benign and inconsequential injuries,” said Gribble. “This is not just a problem for athletes, as a large percentage of the population reports chronic ankle issues. Better efforts are needed to prevent the initial injuries, and also to introduce improved interventions post-injury, to reduce the high rate of chronicity we see in ankle injury patients.”
“The take-home message should be there is no such thing as ‘just an ankle sprain,'” another researcher concluded.