![[Green Ball]](../LINKS/GRAPHICS/COOL_GREEN_BALL.GIF)
Ankle, Foot, and Toe Trauma
R. C. Schafer, DC, PhD, FICC
Ankle and foot injuries are common in sports, much less so in the workplace except from those caused by a fall or a dropped object. Excepting a few sports such as rowing, kite flying, and auto racing, the base of an athlete's activity is provided by the soft tissues and osseous complex of the ankle and foot. Ankle injuries in sports are close in incidence to that of knee injuries. One study shows 50% of ankle injuries during all athletics at one major college occurred in basketball. Soccer also presents a high incidence.
Navicular Stress Fractures in Identical Twin Runners
Physician and Sportsmedicine January 2005 ~ FULL TEXT
Tarsal navicular fractures require an accurate and timely diagnosis to prevent costly and disabling complications. Diagnosis requires a thorough clinical evaluation that focuses on the patient's history, particularly his or her training regimen, and diet—as was the case with these 17-year-old girls. Plain radiography, ultrasound, bone scintigraphy, MRI, and CT help make a definitive diagnosis. Treatment of low-risk fractures involves relative rest and cessation of the precipitating activity. High-risk fractures often require non–weight-bearing immobilization, coupled with therapy, and may require surgery.
Functional Deficits in Athletes with a History of Low Back Pain: A Pilot Study
Arch Phys Med Rehabil 2002 (Dec); 83 (12): 1753-1758
This study found that asymptomatic athletes who had a recent history of LBP were significantly slower in a shuttle run then their peers. It is likely that all these athletes received typical medical treatment (muscle relaxants or pain pills). It would be interesting to compare a post-chiropractic care group to the medically-treated group to see how chiropractic fares.
Acute Ankle Sprains
Physician and Sportsmedicine December 2002 ~ FULL TEXT
The diagnosis and treatment of acute ankle injuries present challenges to both primary care physicians and orthopedic specialists. Determining the position of the ankle when the injury occurred may help distinguish sprains from fractures so that unnecessary x-rays can be avoided. Stepwise rehabilitation restores function and diminishes the risk of reinjury. Physicians can stress functional measures of recovery to objectively assess readiness for return to play and balance the risks of incomplete rehabilitation against the desire for an early return to sports.
Working With the Injured Runner
Kim Christensen,DC, DACRB,CCSP,CSCS
As the number of participants in recreational and competitive running continues to increase, so does the number of chiropractic patients who need treatment for running-associated injuries. Some researchers have estimated up to 60 percent of runners will experience an injury that will limit their activities. 1 While some of these injuries are due to actual trauma, the vast majority fall into the category of overuse syndromes.
Lower Extremity Rehabilitation and the Elderly Patient
Kim Christensen,DC, DACRB,CCSP,CSCS
Whenever an elderly woman needs to build bone mass to help prevent hip fractures, or whenever a patient over the age of 60 needs to regain strength in an injured lower extremity, certain questions arise: What exercises are safe, appropriate and effective? Will instructing this older patient to exercise make the problem worse? As caring doctors of chiropractic, we never want to increase patients' pain or add to their disabilities.
Rehabilitation of Lower Extremity Disorders
Craig Liebenson, D.C.
A wide variety of lower extremity conditions can present to a chiropractor's office: ankle instability, Achilles' tendinitis, patellar tendinitis, to name just a few. The lower extremity functions as a kinetic chain, since faulty mechanics at one joint can predispose other areas to injury. The classic example is when poor foot mechanics affect the knee.
