Heel kicking exercise rapidly improves pain and function in patients with acute lateral ankle sprain: a randomized controlled trial.
OrthoEvidence Journal (OE Journal) - ACE Report
OE Journal. 2025;13(19):11 BMC Musculoskelet Disord . 2025 Jul 8;26(1):666.What this means for my practice?
HKE, added to early standard care, speeds pain relief, reduces ankle swelling sooner, and advances early function after acute grade I–II lateral ankle sprain, while long-term function is similar between groups. Clinically, teaching HKE can be a low-cost adjunct to accelerate return of comfort and function in the first weeks post-sprain. Limitations include single-center design, modest sample size, and some internal inconsistencies between narrative and tabled end-point statistics for AOFAS.
Study Summary
Sixty (sixty) patients with acute grade I–II lateral ankle sprain were randomized to standard care (PRICE + ankle-pump; n=30) or the same standard care plus heel-kicking exercise (HKE; n=30). The primary outcomes were pain (VAS), ankle swelling (figure-of-eight method), and AOFAS scores. Karlsson scores were assessed at 26 weeks. Outcomes were measured at baseline, 1 day, 3 days, 1 week, 2 weeks, and 4 weeks, with follow-up at 26 weeks. Overall, the results revealed faster improvements with HKE: greater early reductions in pain and swelling and earlier functional gains, with groups converging on pain by 4 weeks and no between-group difference in Karlsson scores at 26 weeks. These findings suggest HKE is a simple, safe adjunct that accelerates short-term recovery after ankle sprain.
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