What is an Ankle Tendinopathy?
Tendinopathy is characterised by pain and stiffness in a tendon that worsens with activity. It is most often a result of micro tears along the length of the tendon caused by repetitive strain. The type of tendon damage broadly falls under either Tendinosis or Tendonitis, which affects what kind of treatment will yield the best results.
There are several tendons around the ankle joint that can be affected. These include:
- Achilles Tendinopathy - This tendon connects your calf muscles to your heel bone.
- Peroneal Tendinopathy - These tendons connect muscles on the outside of your lower leg to a bone on the outside of your foot.
- Tibialis posterior Tendinopathy - This tendon connects a muscle on the back of your lower leg to the inside of your foot.
- Fibularis Tendinopathy (uncommon) - This tendon connects a muscle on the outside of your lower leg to bones on the bottom of your foot.
Above: Ankle tendinopathy can be uncomfortable, our physiotherapists can provide advice on how to best manage this,What causes Ankle Tendinopathy?
Tendinopathy is an umbrella term for damage caused to a tendon and is broadly divided into two common types, Tendinosis or Tendonitis. Tendinosis is the degeneration of collagen fibres that make up the tendon. As a result of chronic over loading and repetitive strain on the tendon, its type 1 collagen fibres are replaced with weaker, immature type 3 collagen fibres. The resulting micro tears that occur as a result of this weakness cause a cycle of repair that thickens the tendon. It is this thickening that eventually causes interference with the surrounding tissues, triggering inflammatory responses and the associated tendonitis.
Inflammation is the key difference in symptoms for Tendonitis. The inflammation can have a variety of causes other than the tendon thickening common to Tendinosis. These include direct injury from an impact to the tendon, creating a tear, or infection from an open wound near the site of the tendon. However, the most common cause is micro tears from overuse, typically from running, sports or active jobs.
Ankle Tendinopathy is a result of this same process that starts with the overloading and repetitive strain of the tendons in the Ankle. Although anyone can develop an Ankle tendinopathy, it is most commonly seen in individuals engaged in sports involving running and jumping. Contributing factors include;
- Inappropriate footwear.
- Hard or uneven training surfaces.
- Sudden increase in training activity.
- Poor posture or running technique, causing biomechanical abnormalities.
Above: Our team of physioterpaist can provide the best treatment to help you with ankle tendinopathy.What are the symptoms of Ankle Tendinopathy?
Symptoms of Tendinopathy will vary slightly depending whether you are presenting with Tendinosis or Tendonitis. Although many of the symptoms as similar, which can lead to one being mistaken for the other. Symptoms include;
Tendinosis:
- Pain.
- Stiffness, usually worse in the mornings.
- Tenderness along the length of the tendon.
- Grating, rubbing or catching sensation in the tendon when in use.
- Symptoms worsen with prolonged activity, especially with sports.
- Symptoms include those listed above for Tendinosis, but also the following
- Swelling.
- Redness.
- Tendon area is warmer to touch then surrounding skin.
- A palpable lump along the tendon is sometimes detected.
How is Ankle Tendinopathy Diagnosed?
To diagnose an Ankle Tendinopathy, a full assessment is required. At Liverpool Physio, our physiotherapists can provide a detailed assessment to ensure you are given the correct diagnosis and treatment for your injury.
To book an appointment, please email office@liverpoolphysio.co.uk or call 0151 558 0077.
What would a physiotherapy assessment for Ankle Tendinopathy involve?
If you book in with us at Liverpool Physio, our Physiotherapists will seek a comprehensive amount of information about your injury to make sure you receive the correct treatment. Your first appointment would include an assessment which is split into two parts.
Subjective
A conversation between our physiotherapist and yourself, to discover what may have caused the onset of your symptoms and gain an understanding of the impact these symptoms have had on your lifestyle.
Objective
Taking into consideration your current pain, this part of the assessment would look at your available movement, ability to walk, balance, stand on your toes and carry out functional tasks, and special tests to identify if there is a Tendinopathy.
What would physiotherapy treatment for Ankle Tendinopathy involve?
If you have an Ankle Tendinopathy, you will have the best outcome if you start your treatment as soon as possible to prevent more damage to the tendon.
Our experienced physiotherapists will provide you personalised treatment sessions for your injury to reduce your pain and swelling around your foot and calf and progress to improving your muscle strength and flexibility. Your treatment sessions are likely to include;
- Ice treatments
- Heat treatments
- Stretching
- Joint mobilisations
- Ultrasound to encourage healing
- Soft Tissue Massage
- Advice and education on how to change your activity whilst your Tendinopathy is healing
- Activity specific exercises (tailored to your lifestyle or sport)
- Strengthening exercises, targeted for Tendinosis presentations.
- Biomechanical and gait analysis.
How can I arrange a physiotherapy assessment for Ankle Tendinopathy?
If you are having problems including pain, stiffness or signs of inflammation around one of your joints you may have a Tendinopathy, and would benefit from an assessment at Liverpool Physio from one of our experienced physiotherapists.
You can contact us directly to arrange an assessment and we can advise you if further treatment is recommended, or give you details on self-management for minor cases. To arrange an appointment please email office@liverpoolphysio.co.uk or call today on 0151 558 0077.
Summary
A Tendinopathy can be very painful and have a pronouncedly limiting effect on you daily activities and sports participation. Without early treatment the condition can easily become chronic and take far longer to heal. With Physiotherapy intervention we can reduce your painful symptoms and speed up recovery.
Our specialist physiotherapists at Liverpool Physio can identify which type of tendinopathy you have and tailor a treatment plan to your specific needs. We can use a combination of massage, mobilisations, stretching and strengthening exercises to ensure you achieve the best possible return to normal function. Every treatment session will aim at getting you back to the normal daily activities and sports you enjoy.
To arrange an appointment at Liverpool Physio you can contact us at office@liverpoolphysio.co.uk or phone us on 0151 558 0077.
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