Broken ankle

Get medical advice as soon as possible if you think you have broken your ankle. It may need treatment to heal properly.

Do not worry if you do not know if your ankle is broken, dislocated or sprained. Get it checked by a doctor.

You have had an injury and your ankle:

What we mean by severe pain

Severe pain:: always there and so bad it’s hard to think or talk

you can’t sleep

it’s very hard to move, get out of bed, go to the bathroom, wash or dress
Moderate pain:: always there

makes it hard to concentrate or sleep

you can manage to get up, wash or dress
Mild pain:: comes and goes

is annoying but doesn’t stop you doing things like going to work

Things to do while you're waiting to see a doctor

raise your ankle if possible
gently hold an ice pack (or a bag of frozen peas) wrapped in a towel on your ankle for 15 to 20 minutes every 2 to 3 hours
stop any bleeding – put pressure on the wound using a clean cloth or dressing
if your ankle is not at an odd angle, wrap it loosely in a bandage to help support it
remove any jewellery on your ankle or toes
take paracetamol

You'll usually have an X-ray to check if your ankle is broken and see how bad the break is.

If you have a very minor break, you may not need any treatment.

For a more serious break, you may need:

a special boot to help support your ankle
a plaster cast to hold your ankle in place while it heals
the bones to be moved back into place by a doctor (they'll give you an injection to numb your ankle)
surgery to fix the broken bones

You'll usually have follow-up appointments to check your ankle is healing properly.

A broken ankle usually takes 6 to 8 weeks to heal, but it can take longer.

The doctor will tell you:

how long you'll have to wear the boot or have the plaster cast on
how much weight to put on your ankle – you may be given crutches or a walking frame to help keep weight off it

Once it's healed, use your ankle as normal. Moving it will stop it getting stiff.

You may need to see a physiotherapist. They can help you with exercises to get your foot and ankle gently moving again.

Ask your doctor when you can return to contact sports or other activities that put a lot of strain on your ankle.

It's important to follow any advice you're given by the hospital or fracture clinic.

There are some things you can do to ease pain and help your broken ankle recover.

rest and raise your ankle whenever possible
take paracetamol or the painkiller your doctor has given you to ease pain
gently move your toes and bend your knee while wearing the boot or cast to ease stiff muscles