Ankle arthritis treatment

Ankle arthritis is a painful condition because aside from the fact that the joints may be inflamed the joints in the ankle would also be one of the joints that would bear the brunt of the patient’s weight. Ankle arthritis treatment would still include prescribed medications given by the doctor to reduce that swelling and to control the pain. Cortisone injections can be given to help in reducing the inflammation of the ankle joints and to eradicate the throbbing pain felt by the arthritic patient.

Ankle arthritis treatment

Aside from these, ankle arthritis treatment would involve going over some therapeutic exercises with a physical therapist, these are exercises targeting the joints in the affected ankles. Braces and shoe inserts could give the patient more comfort since both would give support to the ankles, lessening the pressure and the tension in the joints. Application of hot and cold compress would also be a big help since these would give immediate relief to the aching joint the natural way without the use of anti-inflammatory drugs and painkillers, which can contain synthetic elements that could prove harmful to the body in the long run. Following a healthy and specified diet for an arthritis patient would help in managing the symptoms of arthritis since there are a lot of foods like those high in fat, purine rich foods and red meats that would aggravate the symptoms of swelling and pain instead of easing it. So the main rule for patients with this condition is to watch what they are eating since “your body is what you eat“. Processed foods are to be avoided because it contains preservatives, additives and artificial flavorings which would not bring any good to the patient.

These non-surgical options are the first steps in ankle arthritis treatment, for severe and aggravated cases surgical options would be necessary. There are different types of surgical options for ankle arthritis. Some of the surgical options available are ankle arthroscopy, ankle fusion and ankle joint replacement.

Arthroscopy is done by inserting the arthroscope in the patient’s joint to clean up the damage tissues and cartilage in the joint. An arthroscopy is considered a minor surgery and the patient can go home on the same day of the surgery.

Ankle fusion is a surgical processed that would reposition the joints in the ankle by the use of screws, plates, rods and pins to hold the joints together. This technique would greatly reduce the pain and the swelling in the patient’s ankle but there might be some limitations of the range of movements in the ankles, however this is just a minor issue because the patient would still be able to walk. Most joint fusions in the ankles can last up to 10 to 20 years.

Another one of the surgical ankle arthritis treatment is the ankle joint replacement. This would be done by resurfacing the ankle joint with some mechanical parts to allow the patients to regain their mobility with less pain or no pain at all.