complete tear of ATFL and CFL

[viktor123]

hi! i rolled my ankle 8 months ago, had 3 months of physio where it improved to the point that i could play sports, but still had limited range of motion. eventually, it no longer improved and i was advised to simply give it time.

8 months later (now), i got an MRI which revealed a complete tear of the ATFL and CFL. does anyone know what this means? e.g. is surgery the only way to get it fixed???

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[pudding_bowl]

The ATFL and CFL are ligaments on the side of the ankle. If they've been completely ruptured then they won't grow back and surgery is your option for repairing them.
You can survive without them with just the strength of the muscles but it's not overly advised - especially if you intend to continue with sports.
You need to discuss with your surgeon what your options are.
After 8 months your ankle still isn't where you want it to be, and it's not improving so you have to decide if your happy with where it's at or not. You likely need surgery, but best to discuss with a surgeon.

Good luck

[viktor123]

thanks for your reply. seems that the only thing which saved me from a nasty further injury is all the balancing exercises i did! i have been playing high-intensity sports such as squash, badminton, and basketball... without my ATFL and CFL in tact and no supportive bracing. if only i had known!

[pudding_bowl]

Exactly. Good Prioprioception and muscle strength can mask your symptoms very nicely. Sounds like you'v had a good physio with you thus far.

[viktor123]

i'm booked to have a consultation with the surgeon next week, and the fate of my ankle will be decided then. but before i see him, i want to put forth a couple of questions here.

my ankle is strong and stable. feels similar to how it was pre-injury. i have been playing competitive sport without limitation... EXCEPT for limited range of motion and some minor swelling - which may be due to a healing avulsion fracture at the tip of the fibula.

my feeling is that if i can regain full range of motion and eliminate the swelling, then i'm fine without my ATFL/CFL so long as i use an ankle brace as a precautionary measure during sports. so i'm beginning to think that surgery should be avoided in this instance.

is my evaluation reasonable? or is no ATFL/CFL too risky (i'm a very active sportsman) even though the ankle feels strong and stable? my fear is that surgery may make the ankle worse than it is now (surgery is always a gamble).