Is it normal to experience swelling of the ankle after a tibial fracture??

by April
(Clinton, IN.)

My son broke his tibia, mid shaft between the growth plates. He was in a long leg cast for 4 weeks, then they cut it down to a short leg cast for another 4 weeks. Last week they took the cast off, put him in a walking boot, and told him to remove it several times a day to exercise the ankle due to the immobility, his ankle needs to be strengthened..and they want him to gradually start putting his weight on it until he is full weight bearing. The ankle and foot are a little swollen, not extremely, but you can tell...is this normal? How long does this last? We do elevate it when resting, and he has used tylenol, and ice packs. Is there any type of exercise that are best to do with the ankle? What else can i try to get the swelling to decrease..it seems to be ok in the mornings, then as the day progresses it is swollen. He doesn't complain of any major pain, just that it's sore, which is to be expected for it being unused for that amount of time.