Ankle Posterior Impingement

Ms Ann (not her real name) is an elite level badminton athlete who came with complaints of pain in the back of both ankles with net-play and jumping smashes since 3 months duration. To her dismay, she still had the pain despite taking a month off from training. These symptoms are also common in gymnasts and dancers who do repeated jumps and en-pointe. Soccer players have been reported to have similar symptoms in literature.

I examined her ankles and found that she had tenderness and bogginess (oedema) of the posterior aspect (back) of her ankle joint (between the Achilles tendon insertion and the calcaneal and talus bones). She had pain when I compressed her hindfoot with her foot plantarflexed (Impingement test). If he jumped repeatedly on the spot, it would give her the same pain. She also had tenderness of her Achilles tendon insertion (Insertional tendinopathy) and associated hindfoot varus.

I have advised her to do some calf stretching with the knees bent slightly and knees straightened. She was also taught to tape her ankle to prevent full plantarflexion. She was planned for an X-ray to rule out Os Trigonum or fracture of the lateral tubercle of Talus. An MRI of the ankle would identify bone bruising, tendon and joint capsule inflammation.

Ultrasound guided corticosteroid has been shown to benefit most athletes with capsule or tendon inflammation. Most of these athletes are symptom free after 2 weeks and return to play within 4 weeks rehabilitation. A selected few with persistent symptoms, os trigonum or a possible nerve entrapment may require arthroscopic surgical intervention.

Find out more about the injury here:-
Posterior Ankle Impingement in Professional Soccer Players: Effectiveness of Sonographically Guided Therapy
MRI features of foot and ankle injuries in ballet dancers