With the start of school brings another sports season. This means injuries are officially back. As every athlete knows, perhaps the most common of sports injuries are sprained ankles.

Sprained ankles typically occur when you land awkwardly on your feet in a way that damages the tissue surrounding your ankle bones. This is almost always excruciatingly painful, often resulting in being sidelined for up to several weeks. Sometimes bruising can result in the lower foot and can even stretch up to the mid-calf.

Some preventative measures often taken to combat ankles sprains include taping the ankles and wearing high-topped shoes. However, sprained ankles are just one of those inevitable injuries that virtually every athlete will experience in their life. With fall being the season for football, field hockey and soccer, ankle sprains suffered while running full speed are typically painful for weeks at a time. While icing your ankles after suffering an ankle sprain will help reduce swelling and speed up the healing process, visiting us at AFC Doctors Express Urgent Care Watertown will get you back on the field faster.

At our center we diagnose and treat sprained ankles on a walk-in basis. We provide patients with an initial medical evaluation to determine the severity of the sprain and if necessary, we’ll perform an x-ray examination as well. For treatment, we’ll typically provide patients with a splint to help stabilize the injured ankle, and in more severe cases, we can additionally prescribe medication.

Visit us any day of the week for sprained ankle treatment, and if you have any questions, don’t hesitate to call us at 617.923.2273. We look forward to getting you back on the field!