Supervised Rehabilitation Versus Home Exercise in the Treatment of Acute Ankle Sprains

What is it about?

In this study, we assessed the quality and compared studies that assessed the effectiveness of care provided by a clinician to studies that used a home exercise program for the treatment of recent ankle sprains. We found that compared with home exercise programs, supervised rehabilitation results in less pain and perceived instability at 8 weeks after an ankle sprain, but not at longer-term follow-up points. Supervised rehabilitation also had greater gains in ankle strength and improved joint position and movement sense compared with home exercises at 4 months following an ankle sprain. The rate of recurrent ankle sprains within 12 months after ankle sprain was the same between patients treated with supervised rehabilitation and home exercise. Only 11% of ankle sprain patients in the general population receive supervised rehabilitation within 30 days of being diagnosed with an acute ankle sprain.

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Why is it important?

Ankle sprains are common and limit the ability for individuals to function in life. About half of all ankle sprains will progress to develop long-term giving way of the ankle and disability. It is important to balance the cost of care with the potential benefits of supervised treatment.