Any injury caused by the application of greater force than the body part can handle, lack of proper training, lack of proper stretching and warm up, improper use of equipment and accidents during sports falls under the category of ‘sports injuries’. While most of the sports injuries you suffer from will disappear just after a few hours or days, they are likely to come back to haunt you years later. Since any part of your body can get injured during sports, there is every reason why you should take any resultant pains, discomforts or small injuries very seriously.
Sports injuries can either be acute or chronic; acute injuries occur suddenly during activity, such as a sprained ankle caused by an accidental soccer move. Chronic injuries on the other hand can be caused by overusing the same muscle groups or joints, structural abnormalities or poor sporting/exercising techniques.
Here are the 7 common sports injuries that most people encounter:
- Ankle sprains – symptoms include swelling, pain and stiffness
- Dental problems – a blow to the jaw can crack, break or dislodge the teeth
- Bruises – small bleeds into the skin
- Dehydration – losing too much fluid can lead to heat exhaustion and heat stroke.
- Nose injuries – can either be blood nose or broken nose caused by a direct blow.
- Cuts and abrasions – caused by falls. The knees and hands are mostly prone
- Concussions – mild reversible brain injury from a blow to the head, it may be associated with loss of consciousness. Some common symptoms include dizziness, headaches and short term memory loss.
Common Treatments For Sports Injuries
At the Dr. Eric A. Lane, we have all the sports-injury-specific treatments you need to feel better:
A) Minor Sports Injuries
If your injury is not too serious, e.g. a mild sprain or minor muscle damage, we may offer RICE therapy treatment:
- Rest
You are advised to avoid regular exercise and reduce your daily physical activities. Also using crutches or a walking stick may help if you cannot put up with your weight on the ankle or knee. - Ice
Appling a pack of ice to the affected area for 10-30 minutes helps. Wrap the ice pack in a towel to avoid directly contact with your skin, which may lead to ice burns. - Compression
Make use of elastic compression bandages to reduce swelling. - Elevation – Keep the injured leg, arm, knee, wrist or elbow raised above the level of the heart. This also helps to reduce swelling.
B) Physiotherapy
Our physiotherapy service involves employing massage, manipulation and special exercises to improve the range of motion and re-function the injured areas to normal. A physical program, including walking and swimming, can be utterly helpful to people recovering from long-term injury as it helps strengthen the muscles in the affected body part(s).
Massage is an effective way of speeding up the recovery process through two main ways:
- It encourages blood flow into the affected body part and the nutrients in the blood help repair any damaged tissue.
- It increases flexibility in the affected body part.
However, it is not recommended if you have a serious soft-tissue injury as it could make injury worse.
However big or small your sports injury may be, Dr. Eric A. Lane can help you get better, fast and with permanent results!
