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A stress fracture of the bone or ankle is a break in the foot or ankle bones. It is also called a hairline fracture. These breaks often happen because of repeated stress on the foot bones over time from things like running, sports, or other kinds of exercise The two most common kinds of stress fracture are a metatarsal (foot bone) fracture and a talus (ankle bone) fracture.
Stress fractures of the foot and ankle are bone breaks that happen in the foot or ankle. These bones help support the rest of your body while you are standing, walking, running, or exercising and can take a lot of pressure. However, if they are put under too much pressure, they can fracture (break).
There are 3 different kinds of breaks:
Stress fractures most commonly happen in the bones in the foot or the ankle. These include:
Even though you might not notice a stress fracture right away, it is a serious medical condition that can cause permanent damage to your foot or ankle if not treated.
The symptoms of stress fractures of the foot and ankle can be similar to symptoms of dislocated joints or ankle sprains. However, you should still see a doctor for any of these conditions. Even if you don’t have a fracture, your doctor can prescribe treatment that will help you heal faster and with fewer long-term effects. Common symptoms of a foot fracture include:
Usually, these symptoms will be worse near the bone that is broken, but you can also feel pain or other symptoms in nearby areas of the body, like the ankle, toes, or arch of the foot.
Stress fractures can happen over a long period of time, so you might not notice all these symptoms right away. Sometimes, these symptoms will start out minor and get worse over time, or they might go away and come back worse than they were before.
If you think that you have a broken bone, you should get medical treatment right away. Keeping the bone still and weight off the injured foot or ankle can keep your injury safe while waiting for medical help.
There are many causes for stress fractures in the foot and ankle. Anything that puts too much stress on the bones in the feet can cause a fracture, even if that stress happens over a long period of time. Common causes include:
Sometimes, these causes can weaken your bone, which makes it easier to break in a situation where it normally would not.
Because hairline and stress fractures are small, your doctor might not be able to tell that you have a foot or ankle fracture just by looking at the part of your foot that is injured. Your doctor will most likely request an imaging test, like an x-ray (a test that passes beams of low-level radiation through your body) to take pictures of the injured area and find out whether you have a bone fracture. X-rays can also rule out a diagnosis of a dislocated joint, which is a common injury of the ankles.
If you think that you might have a foot or ankle fracture, you should see a doctor as soon as you can. Your doctor might treat your foot fracture in different ways depending on the kind of break you have and how serious it is. Some treatments include:
There are also some first aid steps you can take before you see a doctor to help keep your injured foot safe and reduce pain. The letters RICE can help you remember what to do:
Stress fractures in the foot and ankle are often caused by physical activity like running, sports, and other kinds of exercise. You can prevent fractures and other injuries to your foot by taking these steps: