I thought I sprained my ankle, but...?

Question

I thought i sprained my ankle litteraly 2 week and 2 days ago, it instantly swelled, turned blue and purple and I couldn't walk on it for about a week. Then the bruising healed, I could begin to walk perfectally normal, but it's STILL just as swollen. I wake in the morning and my foot looks like it's normal size, but as soon as I leave work, my foot is huge again. There isn't any discomfort or pain, it's just swollen, maybe a little tight feeling. Does anyone have any quick assumptions to this? I do not have help insurance, hence I am asking for advice on here, if i MUST go to the doctor, than obviously I will. But if there is a diagnosis someone can help me with, that would be great!

PS Yes i have elevated it and put ice on it for the entire 2 weeks.

Answer 1

Sprains are tendon or ligament injuries, and the severity covers a wide range from mild stress that heals in a few days to severe ruptures that take months to heal. Sometimes the healing causes the tendon to contract, or to form calcium to build-up where there should be cartilage. Either of these conditions can cause inflammation and swelling from normal use, and this type of problem might not go away without some type of treatment that is different from what you are presently doing. Daily stretching and exercise, followed by ice and elevation may help.

There's really no way to provide much of an assessment at this point without an MRI or an x-ray, but you could try some therapy on your own to see if it helps. If conditions don't improve from some rehab work, you may have no choice but to see a doctor.