Treating Joint Sprains with Chiropractic Treatment and Massage Therapy

Have you ever rolled your ankle or experienced re-occurring joint pain? Or perhaps you had a more significant accident like a sports injury or fall. You’ve likely sustained a joint sprain. Joint sprains occur when ligaments, the tough bands of tissue connecting bones to one another, are stretched or torn due to sudden twisting or wrenching movements. These injuries commonly affect areas like the ankles, knees, and wrists. But joints in the spine, jaw, and shoulder can also be sprained.

Symptoms of a sprain may include pain, swelling, bruising, and difficulty moving the joint. Sprains range from mild to severe and proper rehabilitation and gradual return to activity are essential for preventing re-injury and restoring full function to the affected joint. At Omni Health and Wellness, the common joint sprains treated are the ankle joint, knee joint, sacroiliac joint (SI), and facet joints located in the lumbar spine and cervical spine.

How Massage Therapy in Vancouver Can Help:

Massage therapy is an important part of healing an injured joint. When you sprain an ankle, you have likely overstretched the anterior talofibular ligament (commonly referred to as ATFL, located in the front part of the ankle) or the deltoid ligament (located in the inner side of the ankle). These injured structures can cause swelling, pain, and increase stress on the surrounding muscles. The aim of a Vancouver RMT is to decrease the amount of swelling in the area, promote blood flow for healing, and ease the pain levels. In later stages of healing, your RMT may do some advanced techniques to assist in preparing the joint for physiological movements.

How your Chiropractor in Vancouver can treat your sprained joint:

Chiropractic care encompasses all of the skeletal joints in the body, which include the the ankles, toes, knees, hips, and spine. Your chiropractor will assess the joint with range of motion testing and special orthopaedic testing to determine the ligaments that are sprained. If there is swelling in the sprained joint, an electrical stimulation device can be used to help decrease swelling and pain levels. Gentle soft tissue therapy and joint mobilizations are used to effectively stimulate collagen growth for the injured tissues. Exercises and home care tips will be provided to help manage the pain, swelling, and re-injury of the joint. When your sprained joint is feeling better, you will be prescribed exercises to further the strength of the affected areas to help prevent future injuries. The goal of treatment is to decrease pain, speed up recovery, and decrease the risk of re-injury.