What Causes Swelling In Ankles?

Posted on Mon, 9 Feb 2015

Question: I travel on train for 5 hours a day and sit for 8 hours intermittently and my ankles swell so bad I can feel the skin stretching and stays along time

Answered by Dr. Rakesh Madhyastha (1 hour later)

Brief Answer:
Needs evaluation

Detailed Answer:
Hello

Thanks for the query

Swelling of the ankles is very common in individuals who sit for a long time. It is because of venous pooling of the blood
However the other most common reason is most loss of protein in the urine. I strongly suggest you to get urine protein test done to see if you are losing protein in the urine. Long standing hypertension or uncontrolled hypertension can often lead to loss of protein in the urine.

In the mean time I suggest you to do the follwoing

1. Every 30 min stretch your legs and go for a short walk in the train or in your office
2. Keep your legs slightly elevated and not completely on the ground
3. Wear tight stockings
4. Pharaceutical solution would be to add a hydrocholorthiazide to your Karvea. You can Irbesartan with hydrocholorothiazide combination, this will reduce the swelling
5. Reduce the amount of salt you take in the diet

I hope I was of help, if you have any further queries please get back to me

Regards

Note: For further queries related to coronary artery disease and prevention, click here.

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