Soft tissue foot injury

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About your foot

The hindfoot

It has 2 bones. The talus bone which connects to the bones of your lower leg and the calcaneum bone which forms your heel. Fractures in your hindfoot, for example your heel, happen because of extreme force.

The midfoot

It includes the navicular, cuboid, and 3 cuneiform bones.

The forefoot

It has 5 metatarsal bones and 14 toe bones called phalanges.

A joint called the mediotarsal separates your hindfoot from your midfoot.

The Lisfranc joint separates your midfoot from your forefoot.

See the individual care plan for your type of fracture to understand more about your injury, treatment and how to recover.

Advice for a recent foot injury

Medication

The Emergency Department (ED) or a Minor Injuries Unit (MIU) may have prescribed you with some pain relief. Take these as instructed to help manage the pain.

If you do not feel that this medication is helping, talk to us during your appointment in Fracture Clinic, or your GP, about an alternative option.

Cold packs

Ice is a great natural anaesthetic that helps relieve pain and controls swelling. Apply ice packs or a bag of frozen peas wrapped in a wet thin towel to your injured area for up to 15 minutes every few hours.

• Do not place ice in direct contact with the skin.
• Do not leave the ice pack on for more than 20 minutes at a time in one hour.

Rest and elevation

It’s important to rest your injured area as much as possible in the first 24 to 72 hours.

It’s normal to experience swelling after your injury which is often worse at the end of the day.

Elevation reduces swelling, which in turn relieves pain and speeds up your healing. Keep your injured area elevated as much as possible during the first 24 to 72 hours.

If you have been given a sling, use it to keep your injured area elevated. You may find it more comfortable to use pillows to elevate it during the evening and at night.

If you have a lower limb injury, try to keep your feet elevated above the level of your hip.

Smoking

Medical evidence suggests that smoking prolongs fracture healing time. In extreme cases it can stop healing altogether. Stopping smoking during the healing phase of a fracture will help ensure optimal recovery from this injury.

For advice on stopping smoking and local support available, please discuss this with your GP or go to the NHS Better Health website.

Helping your recovery

Being healthy can help you recover from your injury faster. Eating well, staying hydrated and keeping as active as possible will all help. We’ve put together a set of videos on all the things you can do to help you recover as quickly as possible.

Care plan

Below we have a care plan, including information that will help you understand your injury, guide you through your rehabilitation and explain what you can do to maximise your recovery.

Your diagnosis should have been made by an orthopaedic consultant or one of the team working under the supervision of the consultant team. The information in this care plan is to help you understand your diagnosis and is not exhaustive.

What is your injury?

You have damaged the muscles, tendons or ligaments in your foot. You may have done this by stepping awkwardly off a pavement and rolling over your ankle.

Soft tissue foot injuries can also happen from excessive overuse or exercising chronically fatigued muscles and tendons.

Types of soft tissue foot injury

Tendons are fibrous bands that attach muscles to bone. We refer to muscle or tendon damage due to overstretching as a ‘strain’. Ligaments are also fibrous bands that hold bones together. We call ligament damage due to overstretching a ‘sprain’.

Strains and sprains are both very common and can happen through accidents at home, at work or while playing sport.

Symptoms of soft tissue foot injuries

There are 3 grades of soft tissue foot injuries depending on the severity with different symptoms:

Grade 1 strain or sprain (mild)

• Minimal over-stretching. Possible minor microscopic fibre tearing
• Mild tenderness and minimal swelling.

Grade 2 strain or sprain (moderate)

• Partial fibre tears
• Moderate pain tenderness and swelling
• Unable to apply loading to the injured area without pain.

Grade 3 strain or sprain (severe)

• Complete rupture of the ligament’s structure
• Significant pain and swelling
• Inability to use the injured area
• Instability of the affected joint.

Healing

This ranges from 2 to 12 weeks depending on the severity of your injury. Recovery times can also depend on your age, general health and occupation.

Follow up

You may need a detailed examination by a member of our Emergency Department (ED) team or one of our Minor Injury Units (MIU) at the time of injury. We recommend you go straight to the ED if:

• you can’t put any weight on your injured foot
• you have an unusual deformity or shape in your foot
• you heard a pop or crack at the time of your injury
• surrounding bony structures feel painful
• you feel numbness or pins and needles at the injury site or anywhere else.

The ED or MIU team will decide if you need a referral to the Fracture Clinic or to physiotherapy.

Your rehabilitation plan

For the first 3 days after your injury, you must:

• follow the PRICER rules (protect, rest, ice, compression, elevation, rehabilitation)
• get a diagnosis from our ED
• move your foot gently without pain if possible.

Between 3 days and 4 weeks you should:

• reduce swelling and stiffness
• begin to regain normal movement.

From 4 to 12 weeks you should be able to:

• regain normal movement in your foot
• return to normal activities.

Using your boot and crutches

Wear your boot and use your crutches as instructed in the care plan for your injury above. This video shows you how to fit and wear your boot.

Boot advice for people with diabetes

If you’re diabetic, please contact the Fracture Clinic on 01872 253091 to discuss your boot. It’s important if you have problems with your skin. We can provide you with a specialist diabetic boot.

Footwear for your uninjured foot

Choose a supportive shoe or trainer with a firm sole for your uninjured foot. You’ll notice that your boot has a thicker sole. By matching this height on the uninjured side, you’ll reduce stress on your other joints.

You can buy an adjustable shoe balancer to match the height of your injured side.

How to use crutches

These videos show you how to use your crutches.

What should I do with my boot and crutches when I no longer need them?

We can’t use the boot again. You should not return it to the hospital.

You can return crutches to the Fracture Clinic or your local physiotherapy department.

Preventing complications

Caring for your wound and stitches

If you’ve had an operation, you’ll need to keep your stitches dry and clean. You should also look out for any redness or signs of swelling, bleeding or pus as these can be signs of an infection.

You can find information about how to care for your stitches, if/when they need to be removed and signs of an infection on our surgery for fractures and soft tissue injuries page.

Blood clots and Deep Vein Thrombosis (DVT)

Because your limb is immobilised and you’ll be moving less than normal, you’re at higher risk of developing a blood clot or Deep Vein Thrombosis (DVT). This can be life threatening if left untreated.

Symptoms of DVT in the leg are:

• throbbing or cramping pain in 1 leg (rarely both legs), usually in the calf or thigh
• swelling in 1 leg (rarely both legs)
• warm skin around the painful area
• red or darkened skin around the painful area
• swollen veins that are hard or sore when you touch them.

These symptoms can also happen in your arm or tummy if that’s where the blood clot is.

More information about DVT

• Watch this video about how to prevent DVT.
• Learn more about DVT including symptoms, who is at risk and how to treat it.
• Find out how to reduce the risk of blood clots when you have an immobilised lower limb (PDF, 108 KB).

Preventative medication for DVT

If you have been told not to put any weight through your leg or to partially weight bear (50%), you should have been assessed in ED or MIU and told if you need to take preventative medication.

If you have not had this conversation please call your GP for an urgent appointment.

Depending on your injury, you may have been prescribed a course of a blood thinner. There are a few different types of medication and they often need injecting into your tummy. You can discuss an alternative with a doctor. Please see the relevant care plan for your injury.

Pressure sores and ulcers

Wearing a boot or plaster cast combined with not moving your limb can lead to pressure sores or ulcers. These are injuries to the skin and underlying tissue caused by prolonged pressure, rubbing or tension.

They often develop gradually, but can sometimes form in a few hours.

Signs and symptoms of pressure sores

These include:

• skin discolouration – red patches for people with pale skin, purple or blue patches for people with dark skin
• discoloured patches that do not turn white when pressed
• a patch of skin that feels warm, spongy or hard
• pain or itchiness in the affected area.

If you have a boot, take it off every day to check your skin and make sure it’s not rubbing.

If you have a plaster cast, look out for a change in colour (red or white) of your skin above or below the plaster, an increase in pain inside the plaster or pins and needles.

• Watch this video to learn how to prevent pressure sores.
• Read more about pressure sores on the NHS website.

If you think you have a pressure sore or ulcer call the Fracture Clinic straight away on 01872 253091.

For out of hours advice please call 01736 758909.

Sepsis

Sepsis (also known as blood poisoning) is a serious infection that can be life threatening. There is no one sign for sepsis so it can be hard to spot.

Call 111 immediately if you develop any of the following:

• Slurred speech or confusion
• Extreme shivering or muscle pain
• Passing no urine in a day
• Severe breathlessness
• It feels like you’re going to die
• Skin is mottled or discoloured.

Find out more about the symptoms of sepsis on the NHS website.

These videos also explain what sepsis is and how to spot the early signs.

Living with your injury

Work

Decisions to return to work are made on a unique basis and should be discussed with the Fracture Clinic, your GP, and your employer.

You may need time off work and when you return, you may need light or amended duties. When you should return to work will depend on your profession and your injury.

If you see us in person at the Fracture Clinic we can give you a fitness for work statement or a sick note. If you don’t come to see us, you can also get one from your GP.

Driving

If you have an injury to a lower limb (foot, ankle, or knee), you can return to driving when you:

• have been told you no longer need your brace, boot or crutches, or your plaster cast has been removed
• can walk comfortably
• can perform an emergency stop pain-free.

Always test your ability to drive with the ignition off and in a safe environment.

If you have a follow-up appointment with us, please wait until your consultant or physiotherapist has given you clearance to drive.

If you’re in any doubt, do not drive until you have spoken to our team.

Sport

You should not do any sports at all for at least 6 weeks.

You must avoid impact sports, jumping, running, dancing, and heavy lifting for at least 12 weeks.

Some injuries will mean you have to wait longer before you can return to sport or impact activities. Please check your specific care plan. If you’re unsure about whether you should do a sport or activity, please call the Fracture Clinic on 01872 253091.