You can’t always tell what sort of injury you have by looking at your foot, so what does your pain mean: sprain or fracture? Unless there is a bone sticking out or your foot is an odd shape, the only way to know for sure is to come in and let us take an x-ray. That’s because both injuries have similar symptoms of pain, swelling, possible bruising, and an inability to walk on it to some degree.
Sprains involve damage to the soft tissues in your foot and ankle—mainly ligaments that stretch too far or are torn. Fractures, on the other hand, mean a bone is broken. That can range from a tiny crack in the surface (stress fracture) to a fully-displaced break where the bone pieces don’t line up properly. We treat each injury differently, so it is important to know which one you have.
When you are injured, if your foot is turning numb or blue go to the emergency room right away. Otherwise, call Yuko Miyazaki, DPM at (510) 647-3744 and set up an appointment at our office in Berkeley, CA as soon as possible. Proper healing is your best chance of avoiding future issues from the injury.