Massage Science.

Yesterday, I met an old friend, limping towards me at the local shopping village.

I am a manual therapist with an avid interest in anatomy, and anatomical irregularities; this girl, 45 years old, had an obvious injury to her left ankle, which she said was due to" a fracture of the ankle."

We moved away from the bustle into a coffee-shop, so she could rest her foot a little, and she revealed a few things to me:

1. While delivering product for her employer, she stepped out of her car, tripped on a loose piece of paving, and falling, fractured her fibula. This is a slender bone in the lower leg, that really, is an ankle bone, rather than a leg bone - but I digress...

2. She had the necessary examinations, and fibreglass cladding, and here we are, four weeks after. Her foot is swollen, and quite uncomfortable in the shoe; her calf is also enlarged, and she is beginning to experience hip pain.

3.She has been receiving physiotherapy treatment, for ankle rehabilitation, as well as the post-injury oedema - this involves the use of a surgical garment for the lower limb. I would point out here that outside the coffee shop it was approaching 35 degrees, so, any kind of bandage, any kind of excess clothing, was not a good option.

4. The employer is trying to avoid liability - and is making noises about stopping,or limiting, the insurance cover.

Another life, in another city; oedema can not always be helped with bandages, or garments - adding heat to an already stressed zone will only invite more fluid into the area.

Consider the extra effect of the emotional stess of a lone parent, desperately needing the job, on her feet much of the day, with the insurance company breathing down her neck.

A lot of the therapy we are asked to provide goes beyond structure, possums,