Inner ankle pain when running

[Aileen Reid]

Hey, I know how you feel! But one thing that strikes me is your injuries are all mostly left sided. Have you been checked for leg length discrepancy - structural or functional?

I felt like you a month or so ago - one thing after another. Then I found I was all screwed up. Since I've been unravelled I'm all coming right. So don't give up, at 43 you shoud NOT be past it. Hell I'm 49 and I'm not past it.

As I said to someone else today - my orthopaedic surgeon kindly reminded me last week I have a big one coming up next year! Took me a while to click. I smiled sweetly and said my ambition is to run a marathon when I've retired. That was greeted by silence and a look that said "You stupid woman!"

OK, I know most of you guys are not running fans either. And I may not run a marathon but I certainly am not putting even one toe in my coffin yet! And neither should you.

[Cal Jones]

I'd definitely recommend getting your gait checked out by a sports podiatrist -he will be able to pinpoint any irregularities and prescribe some orthotics that will sort them out.
I also recommend getting a wobble board or similar to help strengthen your ankles. I got one of these after some ankle instability issues a few years back - they are quite handy.

[Matthias Neumann]

Thanks everyone for the answers!

Steve: concerning the exact location of the pain: since a picture says more than a thousand words, I have uploaded an image; it is only a very rudimentary picture made by myself, since I wasn't sure about copyright issues if I had used anatomically correct images from the web (this is also the reason why I didn't answer straightaway).

My orthotics are custom-made specially for me - the sports doc made a mold of my feet, this was passed on to an orthopedic shoemaker who made me two sets, one for everyday shoes and one specially for running shoes. I guess this would mean they are not prefab orthotics??

Aileen: haven't checked leg discrepancy yet; can I do that on my own, or do I need a specialist for this? And yes, I also think people in their forties and fifties should be able to do Crossfit and unlike a lot of people here, I never minded running, we have a great park in my city with chinup and dip bars, almost ideal for runs and metcon workout.

Cal: I hope we have sports podiatrists here in Germany, I will see if I can find someone, your advice sounds like a great idea as well.

[Steve York]

Matthias,

I'm presuming that the Sports Dr. undertook a biomechanical assessment or at least a gait analysis in prescribing his requirements for your functional orthoses. He should at least be able to supply you with adequate information regarding leg length discrepancy, equinus, foot type, ROM measurements and any other joint abnormalities.

The location of your pain certainly describes the course of the posterior tibial tendon as well as flexor digitorum longus and flexor hallucis longus tendons with the posterior tibial nerve.

If you used your fingers to percuss or tap along the course of the post tib nerve would anything happen?
Can you elevate onto your toes on the unaffected side and then try this with the affected side?
What happens as you resist against dorsiflexion combined with eversion movement?

These are just diagnostic tools to confirm the likelihood of PTTD or tarsal tunnel syndrome.

A podiatrist should be able to assess your BMX, gait, orthoses or any other contributing factors to assist with your problem. But, I guess it's good to have some idea or information relating to this.

I'd also be contacting your Sports Dr. explaining that you've developed a foot pathology and would like him to reassess the orthoses and to make any adjustments accordingly. He may be able to provide you with all the information that you want.