The Rehabilitation of Acute Lateral Ankle Sprain Injuries

This lecture will provide clinicians with a practical overview of the assessment and rehabilitation of static and dynamic postural balance impairments; both of which are frequently experienced by acute lateral ankle sprain patients. The clinical use of the Balance Error Scoring System and the Star Excursion Balance Test will be introduced, as well as evidence based postural balance training programmes. The importance of differences in somatosensory integration will be discussed, along with how to factor these different levels of integration into the design of acute lateral ankle sprain rehabilitation programmes.

Learning Objectives:
After viewing this lecture, you should be able to:
1. Understand the importance of using a patient-reported outcome measures questionnaire, such as the FAAM sports subscale, in day-to-day clinical practice.
2. Understand how to use the Balance Error Scoring System to evaluate patients’ static postural balance performance.
3. Use a patient’s results on the Balance Error Scoring System to design an individualized impairment-based static postural balance rehabilitation programme.
4. Describe the differences between ankle strategy and hip strategy and their contributions to static postural balance.
5. Understand the importance of midfoot mobility to an optimal ankle strategy of static postural balance performance.
6. Understand how to use the Star Excursion Balance Test to evaluate patients’ dynamic postural balance performance.
7. Acknowledge the role of balance training in improving patients’ self-reported ankle function.
8. Understand the hierarchical levels of somatosensory integration and how these might be leveraged in the design of lateral ankle sprain rehabilitation programmes.