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Ankle

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	Topics Ankle Topic Home In human anatomyHuman anatomy Human anatomy or anthropotomy is a special field within anatomy.... , the ankle jointFacts About Joint A joint is the location at which two bones make contact.... is formed where the footFoot The foot is a biological structure found in many animals that is used for locomotion. ... and the legHuman leg In common usage, a human leg is the lower limb of the body, extending from the hip to the ankle, and including the thigh, th... meet. The ankle, or talocrural joint, is a synovialSynovial Synovial may refer to:* Synovial fluid... hinge joint that connects the distal ends of the tibiaTibia The tibia is the larger of the two bones in the leg below the knee in humans and other vertebrates.... and fibulaFibula The fibula or calf bone is a bone placed on the lateral side of the tibia, with which it is connected above and below.... in the lower limb with the proximal end of the talus boneTalus bone In anatomy, the talus bone of the ankle joint connects the leg to the foot.... in the foot. The articulation between the tibia and the talus bears more weight than between the smaller fibula and the talus. The term "ankle" is used to describe structures in the region of the ankle joint proper. Movement The ankle joint is responsible for dorsiflexionDorsiflexion Dorsiflexion is the movement which decreases the angle between the foot and the leg.... (moving the toes up as when standing only on the heels) and plantar flexion of the foot (moving the toes down, as when standing on the toes), and allows for the greatest movement of all the joints in the foot. The ankle does not allow rotation. In plantar flexion, the anterior ligamentLigament In anatomy, the term ligament is used to denote three different types of structures:... s of the joint become longer while the posterior ligaments become shorter. The reverse is true for dorsiflexion. Articulation The lateral malleolusLateral malleolus The lower extremity of the fibula is of a pyramidal form, and somewhat flattened from side to side; it descends to a lower l... of the fibula and the medial malleolusMedial malleolus The medial surface of the lower extremity of tibia is prolonged downward to form a strong pyramidal process, flattened from withou... of the tibia along with the inferior surface of the distal tibia articulate with three facets of the talus. These surfaces are covered by cartilageCartilage Cartilage is a type of dense connective tissue.... . The anterior talus is wider than the posterior talus. When the foot is dorsiflexed , the wider part of the superior talus moves into the articulating surfaces of the tibia and fibula, creating a more stable joint than when the foot is plantar flexed. Ligaments The ankle joint is bound by the strong deltoid ligament and three lateral ligaments: the anterior talofibular ligamentAnterior talofibular ligament The anterior talofibular ligament passes from the anterior margin of the fibular malleolus, forward and medially, to the tal... , the posterior talofibular ligamentPosterior talofibular ligament The posterior talofibular ligament, runs almost horizontally from the depression at the medial and back part of the fibular ... , and the calcaneofibular ligamentCalcaneofibular ligament Overview The calcaneofibular ligament is a narrow, rounded cord, running from the apex of the fibular malleolus downward and slightly... . The deltoid ligament supports the medial side of the joint, and is attached at the medial malleolusMedial malleolus The medial surface of the lower extremity of tibia is prolonged downward to form a strong pyramidal process, flattened from withou... of the tibia and connect in four places to the sustentaculum taliSustentaculum tali Overview At the upper and forepart of the medial surface of the calcaneus is a horizontal eminence, the sustentaculum tali, which giv... of the calcaneusCalcaneus The calcaneus is the large bone making up the heel of the human foot or the point of an animal's hock.... , calcaneonavicular ligament, the navicular tuberosity, and to the medial surface of the talus. The anterior and posterior talofibular ligaments support the lateral side of the joint from the lateral malleolusLateral malleolus The lower extremity of the fibula is of a pyramidal form, and somewhat flattened from side to side; it descends to a lower l... of the fibula to the dorsal and ventral ends of the talus. The calcaneofibular ligament is attached at the lateral malleolus and to the lateral surface of the calcaneus. The joint is most stable in dorsiflexion and a sprained ankleSprained ankle A sprained ankle, also known as an ankle sprain, rolled ankle, 'ankle injury or ankle ligament injury... is more likely to occur when the foot is plantar flexed. This type of injury more frequently occurs at the anterior talofibular ligament. Name derivation The word ankle or ancle is common, in various forms, to Germanic languagesGermanic languages The Germanic languages are a group of related languages constituting a branch of the Indo-European language family.... , probably connected in origin with the Latin "angulus", or GreekGreek language Greek has a documented history of 3,500 years, the longest of any single language within the Indo-European family.... "a??????", meaning bent. Related terms A common variant of the word "ankle" is "cankle", which is commonly used derogatorily to describe the ankles of obeseObesity Obesity is a condition in which the natural energy reserve, stored in the fatty tissue of humans and mammals, is increased t... individuals where the ankle and calf may be indistinguishable. This insult can be taken further (often jokingly) using the term "thankle", which implies a person's thighs and ankles are indistinguishable. Fractures Most traumaticPhysical trauma Physical trauma refers to a physical injury.... incidents involving the ankle result in ankle sprains. SymptomSymptom The term *symptom* has two similar meanings in the context of physical and mental health:... s of an ankle fracture can be similar than for sprains or there may be an abnormal position, abnormal movement or lack of movement (if there is an accompanying dislocation), or the patient may have heard a crack. On clinical examination, it is important to evaluate the exact location of the pain, the range of motionRange of motion Range of motion or, as used in the medical and weightlifting communities, is the achievable distance between the flexed posi... and the condition of the nerves and vessels. It is important to palpateFacts About Palpation Palpation is a method of examination in which the examiner feels the size or shape or firmness or location of something.... the calf bone because there may be an associated fracture proximally, and to palpate the sole of the foot to look for a Jones fractureJones fracture A Jones fracture is a fracture of the fifth metatarsal of the foot.... or the base of fifth metacarpal fracture (avulsion fracture) Evaluation of ankle injuries for fracture is done with the Ottawa ankle rulesOttawa ankle rules In medicine, the Ottawa ankle rules are a set of guidelines for doctors to aid them in deciding if a patient with foot or an... , a set of rules that were developed to minimize unnecessary X-rays. On X-rays, there can be a fracture of the medial malleolusMedial malleolus The medial surface of the lower extremity of tibia is prolonged downward to form a strong pyramidal process, flattened from withou... , the lateral malleolusLateral malleolus The lower extremity of the fibula is of a pyramidal form, and somewhat flattened from side to side; it descends to a lower l... , or the anterior or posterior margin. If both malleoli are broken, this is called a bimalleolar fracture (some of them are called Pott's fractureFacts About Pott's fracture Pott's fracture, also known as Potts syndrome I and Dupuytren fracture, is an archaic term loosely applied to a variet... s). If three of these are broken at the same time, this is called a trimalleolar fractureTrimalleolar fracture A trimalleolar fracture is a fracture of the ankle that involves the lateral malleolus, medial malleolus and the distal post... (although there are only two malleoli). Ankle fractures are classified according to Weber, depending on their position relative to the anterior ligament of the lateral malleolusAnterior ligament of the lateral malleolus The anterior ligament of the lateral malleolus is a flat, triangular band of fibers, broader below than above, which extends... (type A = below the ligament, type B = at its level, type C = above the ligament). A special form of type C fracture is the Maisonneuve fractureMaisonneuve fracture Overview The Maisonneuve fracture is a spiral fracture of the upper third of the fibula associated with a tear of the distal tibiofib... , which involves a spiral fracture of the fibula with a tear of the distal tibiofibular syndesmosisSyndesmosis A syndesmosis is slightly movable articulation in which the contiguous bony surfaces are united by an interosseous ligament,... and the interosseous membraneInterosseous membrane An interosseous membrane is a broad and thin plane of fibrous tissue that separates many of the bones of the body.... . Only type A fractures of the lateral malleolus can be treated like sprains; all other types require surgery (most often an open reduction and internal fixationOpen Reduction Internal Fixation Open Reduction Internal Fixation is a medical procedure.... ). A castOrthopedic cast A cast is a shell, frequently made from plaster, encasing a limb to hold a broken bone in place until it has healed.... may be required to immobilize the ankle following surgery. Trimalleolar fractureTrimalleolar fracture A trimalleolar fracture is a fracture of the ankle that involves the lateral malleolus, medial malleolus and the distal post... s or those with dislocation have a high risk of developing arthrosis. Additional images See also Tarsus (skeleton)Tarsus (skeleton) In tetrapods, the tarsi are the cluster of bones in the foot between the tibia and fibula and the metatarsus.... Joints (anatomy) FootFoot The foot is a biological structure found in many animals that is used for locomotion. ... Leg (anatomy) External links from the University of GlasgowUniversity of Glasgow The University of Glasgow, founded, 1451, in Glasgow, Scotland....