The bottom line A broken ankle is a more severe injury than a sprained ankle. With a clean break that doesn’t need surgery, recovery can take around 6 to 8 weeks. If you need surgery, recovery will take longer. With a minor ankle sprain, it may take around 2 weeks to heal.

Is a strain or sprain worse?

One is not technically worse than the other. Strains affect the tendons (an easy way to remember this is sTrains = tendons or muscles), and sprains affect the ligaments. Both tendons and ligaments are connective tissues, and both are measured by severity. You can have a mild sprain or a severe strain, or vice versa.

Is a pulled ligament worse than a break?

Sometimes, a sprain can be even more painful than a break. A sprain is caused by trauma that overstretches ligaments and puts stress on a joint. A mild sprain is where the ligaments are stretched but the joint remains stable, while a moderate sprain is where the ligaments are slightly torn, making the joint unstable.

How do you tell if it’s a break or sprain?

With a sprain, you feel pain. But if you have numbness or tingling, your ankle is most likely broken. Where is the pain? If your ankle hurts or is tender to the touch directly over your ankle bone, you probably have a fracture.

How do you know if it’s a break or sprain?

If you can walk with soreness, it is unlikely that it is broken. Is there significant swelling? If the injured area experiences immediate and severe swelling, that could be a sign of a broken bone or fracture. However, if the swelling is mild and develops gradually, it is likely a sprain or strain.

Does a sprain hurt to touch?

With most sprains, you feel pain right away at the site of the tear. Often the ankle starts to swell immediately and may bruise. The ankle area is usually tender to touch, and it hurts to move it. In more severe sprains, you may hear and/or feel something tear, along with a pop or snap.

What is a Grade 3 ankle sprain?

Grade 3: This is a full tear of the ankle ligament. You may have heard a popping sound when it happened. This level of sprain causes severe pain, swelling and bruising. Because the ligament is no longer able to do its job, your ankle will feel unstable and will be unable to support any of your weight.

What does a Grade 1 sprain look like?

Grade 1: Stretching or slight tearing of the ligament with mild tenderness, swelling and stiffness. The ankle feels stable and it is usually possible to walk with minimal pain. Grade 2: A more severe sprain, but incomplete tear with moderate pain, swelling and bruising.

What does a Grade 2 sprain look like?

With a grade 2 sprain, your ligament is partially torn. The incomplete tear causes bruising (due to bleeding beneath the skin), swelling, and moderate pain. The joint remains fairly stable, but the affected area is tender to the touch. Joint function may be compromised slightly due to pain.

How do you tell the difference between a break and a sprain?

Sometimes, a sprain can be even more painful than a break. A sprain is caused by trauma that overstretches ligaments and puts stress on a joint. A mild sprain is where the ligaments are stretched but the joint remains stable, while a moderate sprain is where the ligaments are slightly torn, making the joint unstable.

How to tell if you have a break or sprain?

When you injure your ankle, it may be hard to tell whether you’ve sprained it (stretched or torn a tendon or ligament) or fractured it (broken a bone). Generally speaking, here are some things to keep in mind: If you have pain around the soft tissue areas but not over the bone, you probably have a sprain, not a break.

Do sprains hurt more than breaks?

It depends on the degree of the sprain. In fact, some sprains can actually be worse than breaks, and if not allowed to properly heal can lead to long-term joint pain and weakness. The severity of the sprain depends on the degree of damage to the ligaments and the number of damaged ligaments surrounding the joint.

Is a sprain the same injury as a strain?

Sprains and strains, while sometimes used interchangeably, are not the same thing. A sprain is an injury to a ligament, the tough, fibrous tissue that connects bones to other bone. Ligament injuries involve a stretching or a tearing of this tissue.