Swollen ankle

[Skinny Rooster]

After hiking over 600 miles in one afternoon of hiking the tendons in the front part of my foot/ankle started bothering me. By the time I got to pearisburg the ankle was swollen and I was hobbling. It seemed odd that this could happen 600 miles into a hike. I don't recall any single event that could have injured it. Wondering if I need to replace my oboz after 600 miles? I could get a ride home, see a doctor, get new shoes, and come back in a week. Or I could push on after a couple days of rest. Does anyone have experience with this kind of an ankle problem?

[Skinny Rooster]

The 600 miles was not all in one day!

[Schnitzel]

If I were you, I'd take a day or two zero, and if it is not significantly better, go to a podiatrist. I got off the trail last year at the same place with the same type of trouble - long story short, I'm just now able to walk semi-normally after months of recovery from surgery to transplant a new tendon to replace the one that snapped. Before I was diagnosed, I had some pain, but was able to walk, and I thought it was just a hiking/rheumatoid arthritis thing. Nope. Take it from me - maybe I'm being overly sensitive, but you do not want to play around with potential tendon injuries!

[Lyle]

I'm a paramedic, not a doctor. Since there was no specific, traumatic injury, my first step would be to find a place in town to stay (so ice is available), hole up for several days to a week. During that time, limit walking. RICE - rest, ice, compression, elevation. Limit ice to 20 minutes every couple of hours. Some ibuprofen will do more than just relieve the pain, it actually will help reduce the inflammation, so healing is enhanced.

If after this time, you have not seen substantial improvement, seek the advice of a doctor, but use caution in selection. Best to find one who is active and promotes high activity. Some may want you to quit the hike, others will help you to continue safely and in comfort. Try to find the latter.

When you do get back on the trail, cut your mileage and/or lighten you load. Take it easy, you want to enjoy the hike, not beat yourself up.

Also, you may need new footwear. While I'm easy on shoes/boots, others wear them out much quicker. 600 miles on one pair is a decent amount if they are lightweight runners.

Good luck.

Edit: Post above is something to consider. A torn tendon will not heal on it's own. In your position, I would still try the RICE routine as the first step, but keep in mind, it may be something more serious that will need attention.

[MuddyWaters]

Im very leery of injuries that produce swelling, they are more serious, often accompanies tearing of tissues or broken bones, but can be just irritated tendons too.

Smart thing is to see a doc. Overuse injuries are accumulated small trauma. But they still take just as long to recover from as acute injuries.