Foot and ankle
Why do I keep spraining the same ankle
One ankle rolls, again and again, sometimes on flat ground with nothing to trip over. It heals, feels fine for a while, then gives way the same way it always does. We're not doctors. This page collects what the published research actually says, so you have something concrete to bring to your own.
The usual first steps still apply here: proper footwear, taping or bracing during activity, and physical therapy focused on strengthening the muscles around the joint. Most people are told this and told it's just a weak ankle that needs more work.
The Hypermobility Link Behind Repeated Ankle Sprains
A 2022 case-control study compared 23 people with hEDS or HSD to 23 controls and measured how their ankles and feet actually moved during walking. It found altered multisegment kinematics in the hypermobile group, meaning the joints in the foot and ankle move differently through the gait cycle, not just at the moment of a sprain. That's a mechanical difference happening on every single step, which helps explain why the same ankle keeps failing in the same way.
There's a genuinely reassuring finding attached to this. A 2023 prospective cohort study followed 40 people with chronic ankle instability, 20 with generalized joint hypermobility and 20 without, through three months of supervised balance training. Both groups improved. Hypermobility did not block the benefit of standard balance work. If a doctor or physical therapist has hesitated to push balance training because of hypermobility, this study is worth bringing up directly.
Read more on the hub page
Foot and Ankle Instability and Gait Changes in Hypermobility
Where to take this next
If ankle sprains keep repeating in a pattern that standard rehab hasn't touched, it's worth asking a doctor or physical therapist whether joint hypermobility could be part of the picture, and whether a supervised balance training program is appropriate. Our Foot and Ankle Instability page goes into the research in more depth.
Sources referenced on this page
- 01Case-control study, n=46 (23 hEDS/HSD, 23 controls), 2022, altered multisegment ankle/foot kinematics during gait in hEDS/HSD (link not yet sourced)
- 02Prospective cohort study, n=40 (20 with generalized joint hypermobility, 20 without, all with chronic ankle instability), 2023, 3-month supervised balance training (link not yet sourced)