Comparison of Three Treatment Approaches for Grade I and II Ankle Sprains in Active Duty Soldiers.

Abstract

The opinions or assertions contained herein are the private views of the author and are not to be construed as official or as reflecting the views of the Department of the Army or the Department of Defense. Return to full occupational function is a primary concern for the injured, including those with ankle sprains. This study compared the effectiveness of three different types of treatment for Grade I and Grade II ankle sprains. The effectiveness was determined by how quickly the patient returned to full duty and if the patient had a recurrence of the injury within one month. A total of 184 subjects (60 in Groups 1 and 3; 64 in Group 2) participated in this study. The treatment groups were: 1) strapping with athletic tape for three days, 2) application of gel cast for three days, and 3) daily strapping for three days. All three groups underwent the same physical therapy program before and after strapping or wrapping. All treatment protocols resulted in a better than 50 percent return to full duty in less than 14 days, with Group 3 showing a return rate of 60 percent in three days or less. The study showed (using log linear analysis) a significant difference at the p < 0.01 level between Groups 1 and 3 and Groups 2 and 3. These results suggest that daily strapping can help reduce lost work time due to ankle sprains. J Orthop Sports Phys Ther 1992;15(1):19-23.