Expert: Dr. Brendon J. O`Brien, D.C. - 4/27/2009

Question
Aloha - We live in Hawaii on the island of Kauai.  I am sending you this message because my 14 year old daughter has a tendon that pops over her ankle bone causing pain in her ankle when she does load bearing exercise.  She is a dancer and this is an over use injury.  We have been dealing with this injury for 5 years and have done extensive physical therapy.  It gets her by but she still can not run and do long intense exercise.  We have gotten to the point where we are considering surgery.  There is a doctor here who has the knowledge and expertise to do the surgery.  It would be an ankle re-construction and we have scheduled the surgery for May 5th.  As the time gets closer we are having second thoughts.  Of course I will ask our doctor more questions but I am wondering if you have any advise to offer.  Malaho - Katy

Answer
Aloha Katy,


    Often PT consists of stretching and exercise, but not physically working on the affect tendon and muscle it is attached to.  In a overuse condition the muscle becomes chronically tight causing tension to the tendon pulling on the bone or snapping across the joint.  Specific Soft tissue work to the tendon and muscle belly reduces stress on the tendon/muscle helping to break up adhesions that may have formed from overuse.  If you have not tried this treatment, you may want to find a Doctor of Chiropractic who specializes in sport/soft tissue injuries as they will be familiar in treating this condition.  A MRI should be done on the ankle to make sure the tendon is not partially torn.

Have a great day,
Dr. Brendon O'Brien D.C.