treatment
Last reviewed 01/2018
The general principles of treatment of an ankle fracture are:
- restoration of the mortice through accurate reduction of the bones
- if an ankle fracture is not reduced within a few hours of the injury then definitive treatment must be delayed for a few days while the leg is elevated so that the swelling can go down
- an ankle fracture once reduced (whether by open or closed reduction) requires that the leg is held in plaster for 6-8 weeks or until the fracture unites
- the patient is encouraged to exercise his ankle in order to try and avoid the development of joint stiffness