Ankle fractures

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Ankle fractures can involve the bump of bone on the outside of the ankle (lateral malleolus), which is the end of the smaller leg bone in the lower leg (fibula). Or they can involve the bump on the inside of the ankle (medial malleolus), which is the end of the larger leg bone (shinbone, or tibia), or the back lower end of the shinbone (posterior malleolus) or, more often, both.

The ankle may fracture in more than one place, and the ligaments that make the ankle stable may be torn.
A fractured ankle is painful and swollen and usually cannot bear weight.
Doctors suspect an ankle fracture based on symptoms and physical examination but take x-rays to confirm it.
Stable fractures of the fibula are treated with a walking boot or cast, and most fractures of the tibia require surgery.

(See also Overview of Fractures.)
Ankle fractures are common. The ankle may fracture when the foot is forced up or down or rolls in or out. The ankle may fracture in more than one place. Sometimes the top of the fibula (near the knee) is also fractured.
The ankle joint consists of three bones:

The two bones of the lower leg (fibula and tibia)
A bone in the foot (talus) located between the leg bones and the heel bone

These three bones are connected by several ligaments, which form a ring and make the ankle stable. Fractures often disrupt the ring in more than one place. For example, if one of the bones is fractured, a ligament is often severely torn at the same time. If a fracture disrupts two or more structures in the ring, the ankle is unstable.
Sometimes when force is applied to a ligament in the ankle, the ligament breaks off a small chip of bone at the point where the ligament attaches to the bone. This type of fracture, called an avulsion fracture, may feel more like a severe sprain rather than a broken bone.