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Ankle Locks-Up

Discussion in 'Ask your questions here' started by aperfectwar, Jun 27, 2009.

  1. dwilson

    dwilson Guest


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    I've had similar problems for about three months; however, I've been able to resolve the problem in a matter of minutes by slightly adjusting the way I walk to accommodate full weight bearing on my left ankle. However, after a recent dig in the garden, my left ankle has gotten worse. I have to walk on my tip toes or in high heels. I can put very little weight on my foot without pain in my ankle (the inside). It is difficult, almost impossible to bend my foot forward without pain. However, there is no swelling and no tenderness in my foot or ankle. My balance is compromised, and it appears as if my ankle is weak. I can't balance on my left foot.
    I can certainly admire the stamina of those who have been dealing with the problem for several months and even years. I'm going to give it a few more days, perhaps a week, and if it's still the same, I'm looking for a specialist.
     
    Last edited: Nov 2, 2010
  2. mrobinm

    mrobinm New Member

    Since my post....I have discovered something very interesting. My brother in law had an issue with plantar fasciitis. Turns out the whole problem was his calf muscle was very tight which was putting pressure on that tendon causing severe pain.

    I had one doctor tell me about 6 months ago "your foot is fine...it's your calf muscle so stretch it out very well". Could this be the problem since no one can find any issues with the actual foot? Unreal!
     
  3. mbentham

    mbentham Guest

    I've been dealing with this issue for almost three years now and it seems to be increasing in frequency. I can feel it coming on, but there seems nothing to do about it. My ankle locks up spontaneously accompanied by excruciating pain. In my case, it feels like a tiny bone has popped out of place behind the ankle. I find taking my shoes off and gradually putting weight on my foot on a hard floor helps. The episodes last about 20 to 30 minutes.
     
  4. Unregistered

    Unregistered Guest

    Guess I'll chime in too, with my 'story'. I play sports and am always active. But sometimes the ankle will just stop working. I can be sitting at my desk and minutes later I can't walk. Most of the time it goes away in minutes/maybe an hour. This past weekend it stayed locked up for 13 hours. I tried a heating pad for 3 hours with no success. I finally made up my mind to go to the emergency room for xrays. I get in the shower and bingo by time I get out of the shower it's fine. You laugh about it and say what the ....??? I've never gone to a doctor about it because I can hear him say now that nothing is wrong with it. One thing about my ankle is that most of the time when I walk I hear a crack on every single step coming from that ankle. It doesn't hurt, it just happens and it's loud enough for someone walking next to me to hear as well. Don't know if that is part of the problem or not. Also, my other ankle has a little history. I used to have a dislocating peroneal tendon. It hurt like crazy when it (the outside tendon) would pop over the bone and get stuck. I used to tape it so it wouldn't go to the wrong side when I played lacrosse. Eventually I had surgery to repair it where they sewed something in there to keep it on the right side of the little pointy bone that is on the outside of your ankle. That ankle is fine now but this one with the mysterious lock mechanism that can take place any time drives me crazy.
     
  5. smurff

    smurff New Member

    Hi,

    I have the same problems. Its happened just now again.

    I can easily do it by trying to put a boot on or this time I just moved my foot in a way that must of been just right :(

    What happens is that I can not point my foot up. I can point my toes but not my foot. When I try and do so I feel a pull on my ankle and back of my leg as if my tendon is going to snap.

    I can not put any presure on my foot. If a friend pulls the foot then after approx 20 tries, it frees itself. But it is happening too often now.

    I have had an xray and mri and they didnt find anything. Im going back to the consultant tomorrow. Will let you know. In the mean time I will get back on my crutches and moan :(

    Regards
    Danny
     
  6. kmaitl1

    kmaitl1 Guest

    Hello.......I'm pleased to see that I'm not alone. My situation sounds similiar - but first I have a question to all of you. Do you have any of the following symptoms? tempature change compared to other foot? weaker pulse than other foot? bone thinning in bad foot?

    I broke my talus bone on April 1, 2010. Over 9-mos. later my bone has healed however, my ankle is locked. I've been in PT for 6 weeks. She has loosened all my joints except my ankle will not bend past 90 degree. I've been using crutches for over 9-mos. I can just recently put 100% weight bear but my gait is so terrible that my PTist does not want me to walk without crutches/walker for fear that I will have hip and back problems if I do it before my gait is corrected. I don't know if I can even walk with a proper gait with my ankle locked.

    Two specialists say I have RSD. I have done extensive reading on it since being told that. I'm NOT convinced that I have this disease. Per my primary doctor's encouragement I'm going to see a doctor that will want to give me a nerve block, and who knows what else. I don't know what else to do at this point.

    I have had various X-rays and (2) cat-scans. I have not had an MRI yet but will be asking for one if this shot does not perform miracles. The cat scans have revealed that I have excessive bone thinning (osteoporosis) in the bad foot.

    I do not experience pain (per-se). I do experience soreness after exercise and from when the PTist pushes (with all her strength) on my ankle to force it to bend (which it won't past the 90-degree). When I try to walk on it (full weight bearing) it is uncomfortable, very tight, unstable, and just feels like something is getting in way of me putting all my weight onto it. When I try walking without assists my gait is off terribly. I have an awful limp.

    I workout my entire body with weights twice per week at the "YMCA". I go to PT twice a week. I do my range of motion exercises daily. I don't know what more I need to do to strengthen and loosen the foot to allow me to walk again. But I feel sure that if my ankle will just unlock I can once again walk.

    I go to this other doctor on Feb. 11th. I'm hoping that he will take it more serious than just passing it off as RSD. Something more is going on. I do not have the PAIN that RSD paitients are experiencing. Yes, I have some of the symptoms - but I keep asking "What ELSE" could also experience these same symptoms - so that we can begin looking at that possibility as the root of the problem.

    Good luck to all......... I'm so glad to have others experiencing some of what I'm going through to converse with. I was beginning to feel alone.
     
  7. AB2012

    AB2012 Guest

    Hi,

    My foot/ankle locks up when i run a short distance. I hardly ever run so it doesn't happen too often. But tonight i ran down my hallway and was stopped immediately because of the shooting pain. It happens when i run outisde as well. It seems to be in my lower ankle and it alternates between feet sometimes. I'm a wimp when it comes to any kind of pain but this pain prevents me from walking!! Luckily my pain has only lasted for 30 seconds most of the time. It might just be in my head but it tends to ache afterwards too. When i point my ankles towards the ground they tend to pop a lot of the times. I've never broken or sprained my ankles and i don't have a family history of arthritis. I'm only in my teens so i hope it's nothing too serious. It doesn't last long enough for me to go to the doctor about it and i don't want to have to go to the doctor for them to only tell me it's nothing serious. Please Help!
    Thank you
     
  8. Unregistered

    Unregistered Guest

    i woke up a couple days ago unable to bend my ankle and it hasnt went away yet it there is no swelling and i havent done anything to hurt it! im contemplating goin to docs oor summit if it continues much longer the pain is unreal when i try to walk on it and goin up and down the stairs is murder when i cant bend my ankle!!! any suggestions??
     
  9. Unregistered

    Unregistered Guest

    Hello,
    Haha I'm so glad im not alone!
    3 or 4 years ago I was just sitting down and moved my foot and i felt a 'pop' sensation and my foot was frozen in place for about a day! Incredibly painful, can't bend foot as it has locked at the back of my leg above the heel almost.
    Now it happens several times a week, doesn't hurt anymore but just locks in place causing me to limp for as long as it lasts, usually 20mins. It is so random and people think im crazy when they are walking with me and then I start limping for no reason.
    I am now going to a podiatrist who doesn't have many answers currently but thinks it could be related to my labral tear in my hip or otherwise a posterial tendon snapping across the back. Im now trying out orthotics to see if it helps.
    Hopefully we get some answers for our mystery foot spasms soon!
     
  10. Unregistered

    Unregistered Guest

    I have had the same problem for several years. I have been to several doctors. They request an Xray. I am told I do not have any fractures, but possible arthritis. Then I am prescribed pain killers and anti inflamitory med. This does nothing byt mask the probelm.....meanwhile my ankle is getting worse. I have constant pain at this point. I am going to demand a MRI. I can't take this pain any longer.
     
  11. Unregistered

    Unregistered Guest

    The same thing happened to me! I'm 15, and two days ago I was walking down the stairs and it just locked and sent a searing pain through my ankle when I tried to walk on it. It went away after about 20 minutes. Yesterday, it lasted the whole day. I went to the chiropractor and asked him if he could check it out. He proceeded to tell me that the problem was simple-- that my foot was locked. He pulled on my foot and I could move it again freely... until I started walking again. Heat pack didn't work, shower didn't work. If I point my toes to the ground and then try to bring it back up it feels like my ankle is going to break. I keep feeling like I need to crack it, but it won't crack. It's still that way and extremely irritable because I can't play sports or run... :(
     
  12. Unregistered

    Unregistered Guest

    I just took my 2 year old to an Orthopedic because she is walking on her tiptoes on her left foot and it turns in somewhat. He did xrays said all looked good but when doing a reflex test on her left foot he found it will not flex upward. Now as far as I know it is all the time, not just sometimes and it must not hurt her or at least not bad enough for her to complain. He is referring us to a neurologist for further evaluation. Not sure why, assuming he thinks there is nerve damage? This is the only thing on the web I can find on the subject which is really scary!
     
  13. Unregistered

    Unregistered Guest

    I have ankle pain at the front of my ankle, which has rendered me unable to weight bear on it. All I did was get out of bed in the morning. It can often be a restricted bone in your ankle - the talus. The solution? Go to a chiropractor. Yes they work on ankles - not just backs.
     
  14. smurff

    smurff New Member

    Hi all,

    Just thought I would post an update. I saw a consultant in Oxford called Bob Sharp. He knew what is was straight away. Bone spurs and a cleanup. I had the op 3 weeks ago and all went well. I had an ankle anthroscopy. You can google his name and anthroscopy and there is plenty about him. Anyway, all fixed. Good luck all
    Danny


     
  15. Unregistered

    Unregistered Guest

    Hi all,
    I have the same issue. But I have indeed sprained my ankles many times in my life. I'm 20. Played basketball growing up so getting a sprained ankle was no big deal.

    Anyway, I've had this "locking" problem for at least 3 or so years now. My best guess would be ligaments or possibly something to do with the actual ankle bone itsself. Either way, I've found taking fish oil daily has helped some. It doesn't lock up as much.

    Hope this helps.
     
  16. Unregistered

    Unregistered Guest

    Wow this totally just worked.
    My ankle locked up about 20 minutes ago while I was on the floor foam rolling my back and I must've pointed my toes out straight. It's locked up once before when my feet were hanging off the edge of my bed while I was lying down on my stomach. Couldn't point my toes upwards and couldn't put any weight on it for a whole day until the next night when I was lying down in the same position and it just unlocked.
    I've rolled this ankle numerous times over the years playing soccer so no doubt its from that.
     
  17. tootie359

    tootie359 New Member

    WOW this is crazy...
    i was hoping to find the cure for this ankle lockup by time i was done reading this thread because i was currently in pain...smh but in the middle of reading the pain went away :(....Reading all this and to still find nothing. I feel like im doomed. i know one thing im not wasting my time to go to the doctors so they can tell me nothing too..But i will try a few things i heard from you all. Like bob sharp, looking up cures for bone spurs, rolling my foot on a ball and foot tugging. Wish me luck and i wish you all the same. Im sad because this just start happening to me two days ago. And i see some of you guys have been going threw this for years...WHATTT!!!!! some ankle lock up foundation needs to start up soon. Cause im a current college grad looking for a job and i be damn if my ankle locks up in a interview...Peace and blessings guys!!!!!

    sincerely
    trap foot
     
  18. Unregistered

    Unregistered Guest

    I've had this same problem for 10 years. Interesting..this technique posted about pointing foot and pressing inward WORKED. Thanks! Usually I soak my ankle in a hot bath and the ankle eventually "unlocks"
     
  19. Unregistered

    Unregistered Guest

    hi im not a doctor and i am suffering this problem myself ( as in right now) your problem will not show on xrays because altho you feel it in the bone it is muscular it is your achilles tenden seizing if you will, when your ankle becomes sore again push on the back part of your ankle and i bet the pain will increase where as push anywhere else nothing changes i havent been to the doctor yet but i am going to go this week - only reason i say this is because if you go to your doctor armed with the knowledge thats its a tenden you can explain about the pushing the back of the ankle and the pain and any doctor worth their salt will understand, i dont know if they can do anything or whether its just pain killers and anti-inflammatories again but worth a try
     
  20. Unregistered

    Unregistered Guest

    I've had this problem for 3 years. Unfortunately I am unable to fix it by any rotation of the foot, but it typically self corrects within 24 hours. Occurs once a month or so. I haven't found anything that fixes it quicker.
     
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