¶ … Persistent Disability Associated with Ankle Sprains: A Prospective Examination of an Athletic Population," by Gerber, et. al., published in Foot & Ankle International in 1998. The study was carried out at the United States Military Academy (West Point). This is a specialized population consisting of young, athletic men and women, but other studies have documented the prevalence of ankle sprains across populations (p. 653). This study has significant significance to the study of podiatric practice. As the researchers point out, >40% of patients have chronic complaints about the injured ankles after treatment (p. 654). The study is timely. The results showed that we need more information about the treatment and rehabilitation of ankle sprains because careful, planned care during the first six months were "critical to achieving an acceptable long-term outcome" (p. 659, "Outcomes" section.)

The study has great utility for podiatrists because it demonstrates the need for rehabilitation of the joint even with mild sprains. This study specified their structure for rehabilitation plans ("The rehabilitation program was functionally based, allowing for the patient to progress according to his or her functional ability" p. 654) and was divided...

Then the researchers refined their approaches and answered new questions. They cited studies by Jackson et. al. And others, including an earlier study at the USMA. It explained the West Point Ankle Grading System for sprains well, and generated new information regarding the previously assumed relationship between grade I sprains (usually viewed as "mild" and often excluded from ankle studies, p. 657) and long-term outcome. These researchers found that even grade I sprains could have inadequate long-term outcomes ("When comparing the two groups [grade I vs. grade II-III] at 6 months, however, few differences were seen." p. 657) They hypothesized a reason for this (ex: "Patients with grade I sprains may have self-discharged" before the planned rehabilitation was completed," p. 657).
This paper was written clearly and concisely, with good organization. They explained the preceding research, which laid the foundation for this study in the introduction, and explained their procedures clearly in the "Materials and Methods" section. They consistently specified the type of sprains the participants had, both by…