The bones that can be fractured in the ankle include:

• Lateral malleolus: the end of the fibula
• Medial malleolus: the end of the tibia
• Talus: the bone that lies beneath the tibia and the fibula, and rests on top of the bones of the foot

The lateral malleolus is the most common bone broken in an ankle fracture.

Types of fractures include:

• Simple fracture: one bone is broken into two pieces.
• Comminuted fracture: on bone is broken into more than 2 pieces.
• Closed fracture: the fractured bones do not cause injury to the skin.
• Open fracture: the fractured bone pierces through the skin.