How Can A Hard And Swollen, Red Spot At The Ankle Post Injury?

Posted on Fri, 4 Oct 2019

Question: I think I hurt a vein in back of my ankle. I do have varicose veins that have been treated years ago. It is very swollen and red and very "hard" what can I look foward to and should I leave it alone? Will it drain?

Answered by Dr. T Chandrakant (27 minutes later)

Brief Answer:
Elevate the limb, cold compresses and pressure bandage

Detailed Answer:
Hi.
Thanks for your query.
Noted the history well and understood the concerns.
Swollen, red and hard lump could have been due to ruptured varicose veins.
Since you are a known patient of varicose veins that were treated years ago and have the present situation I would advise you the following in such a situation:

Elevate the affected ankle above the heart level in laying down position to drain out the vein so that the positive pressure is removed.
Give cold compresses.
Try to put a compression bandage on the swelling and distal to it.

I hope these things should help to avoid further damage and buy time before you consult a Doctor at ER or consult a Specialist in the field for further proper investigations like Color Doppler of the lower limbs to find out the cause and give you definitive treatment.

I hope this answer helps you and assists you in positive outcome.
Please post clear and focused photos as these help me to assist you better.
Also feel free to ask for any further relevant queries if you feel that there is a gap of communication.

With Regards.
Dr T Chandrakant.

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Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar