The benefits of sports and exercise far outweigh the risks, but occasionally injuries do happen.
WHO: Anyone taking part in sport.
CAUSE: Sports injuries can be caused by:
- Accident /Trauma – such as a fall, tackle, or
- Not warming up properly before exercising
- Using inappropriate equipment or poor technique
- Pushing yourself too hard -not being fit enough – doing too much too soon
SYMPTOMS: Almost any part of the body can be injured, including the muscles, bones, joints and connective tissues (tendons and ligaments). The ankles and knees are particularly prone to injury.
If you’ve injured yourself, you may have immediate pain, tenderness, swelling, bruising, and restricted movement or stiffness in the affected area. Sometimes, these symptoms may only be noticeable several hours after exercising or playing sports.
DIAGNOSIS: Because sports injuries can have a variety of causes, we will first take a detailed medical history and ask about your symptoms. Very much like muscle and tendon pain.
We would perform a physical examination looking at your movement and strength we may palpate the area to find the exact location of your pain.
We may refer to your GP if we feel further investigations are required.
- X-rays or CT scans to find problems with the bones
- Ultras sound/ MRI to find problems with soft tissues such as muscles, ligaments, and tendons
Although scans are often not required after a thorough examination – this will be discussed during your sessions.
TREATMENT:
Stop exercising if you feel pain, regardless of whether your injury happened suddenly or you’ve had the pain for a while. Continuing to exercise while injured may cause further damage and slow your recovery.
The treatment you receive is based on what’s causing your pain but may include:
- Medication – as advised by a GP or Pharmacist
- Hands on therapy – mobilisations/ manipulations/ massage
- Pain management – TENS, acupuncture
- Exercise – rehabilitation, strengthening, stretching, loading programmes
- Electrotherapy – ultrasound, shockwave
- Aids – splints, supports, taping, braces
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