Sports Injuries

Sports Injuries are the injuries caused during exercise due to overuse of certain body muscles. Sports injuries can occur accidently, lack of training ,improper use of equipments and running on irregular surfaces. Sports injuries commonly occur in people who do not warm up properly and who do not stretch prior to workout.

The common sports injuries are

1) Muscle strain and sprain - The muscular sprain and strain occurs due to sudden exertion or sudden change of direction or sudden use of muscle without proper warming up. Sprain is the stretch or torn in ligaments that connect bones to the joints. Sprain occurs due to fall or twist of the certain part. Example - Ankle sprain is very commonly seen in runners.
Strain is the stretched muscle or tendons which connect muscles to bones.
      

Symptoms

• Swelling and tenderness at the injured site.
• Loss of mobility
• Bruising and warmth of skin.

Prevention and Treatment

• Stop exercising as soon as you notice strain or sprain in your muscles. Avoid exercise until you feel completely better and pain free.
• Use proper equipment like helmets, wrist band, etc to avoid future injuries.
• RICE - Immediate treatment for the injuries are rest, ice application, compression and elevation of the part is required to relive the pain, reduce the swelling and to promote quick healing.
• Light activity of the injured muscle is required as complete inactivity can lead to lose of muscle strength and muscle stiffness.
• Milder analgesic like paracetmol can be taken to reduce the pain.

2) Neck Injuries - The spasm of neck muscles is another commonly seen sports injuries in tennis players who looks up to hit severely. Also seen in bicyclist who use handlebars with back bent.

     Symptoms of neck injuries

• Severe pain in the neck. Tenderness on touch
• Stiffness of neck muscles
• Unable to move the neck in any direction.

     Prevention and treatment

• Gently apply ice for 10 minutes at the neck region. Remember do not apply ice directly on the skin as it may irritate the skin. Take the ice cubes in a piece of cloth and then apply.
• Gently move your head to the left and right to the shoulder and make the neck movement in semicircle direction. This exercise will help to reduce the stiffness and prevent pain.
• If still pain is not reduced , take mild analgesics.

3) Shoulder Injuries- In shoulder injuries, Rotator cuff injuries are commonly seen in the sports where arm are moved frequently overhead. Example - swimming, baseball and heavy weight lifting. Rotator cuff is the muscle that holds upper arm in the shoulder joint can get pinched, inflamed or can tear if arm is moved frequently over head.

       Symptoms

• Shoulder pain which occurs commonly while lifting the arm overhead. Pain gets worse when lifting the arm between 60 to 120 degrees.
• In spite of the treatment, if the pain in not reduced it may be due to inflammation of muscle (tendinitis).
• At this time tendon may tear and lead to more restriction of use of shoulder. At this time MRI shows the complete picture of the muscle condition.

     Prevention and treatment

• Exercise involving shoulder and arm raised is completely avoided.
• Mild analgesic can be taken.
• If the pain is sever and the muscle is torn then surgery is the option.
• Prevent the shoulder injuries by doing exercises for shoulders like internal rotation and external rotation of shoulder.

4) Elbow Injuries - Tennis Elbow is commonly seen elbow injury. Tennis elbow is the inflammation of the tendon that attached to the elbow. Commonly seen in Tennis players.

     Symptoms-

• Pain in the forearm when wrist is extended.
• Pain radiates from elbow to mid forearm.

     Prevention and Treatment

• RICE - Rest of the part, ice application, compression and elevation of the part can help to reduce the swelling, pain and promote healing.
• Muscle strengthening exercise for shoulder and wrist is recommended.

5) Knee Injuries - Knee sprain and runners knee are common knee injuries. Knee injuries are often caused by twisting or bending of knees or due to overweight on knee joints. Weak thigh muscle are common cause for runner's knee. Runners knee occur when running on irreguar surface and running downhill.

     Symptoms-

• Swelling, pain and tenderness around knee joint.
• If injury is sever then muscle spasm and stiffness may occur.
• Restriction of knee movement.

     Prevention and Treatment

• Avoid running until wound is completely healed and no pain occurs.
• Apply ice to the affected part.
• Strengthen the muscles of thighs by doing exercises for thighs like bicycling, swimming, etc. which will help to protect the knee .
• Use knee braces to support the knee during the injuries.

6) Achilles Tendonitis- It is the inflammation of tendon from calf muscle to the heel occurs due to excessive jumping or running.

     Symptoms -

• Pain in the lower calf and back of the heel is the first sign.
• Sometimes swelling may present.
• Sever pain in calf muscle with restriction of movement occurs in case of tendon tear.

     Prevention and Treatment

• Avoid running and pedaling till the pain is stopped.
• Apply ice and give rest to the muscle.
• As soon as the pain stops, stretch the hamstring muscles.
• Wear the shoes with flexible soles to avoid such injuries.
• Toes raise exercise to strengthen the calf muscle - Stand up. Slowly raise up the toe and slowly lower the heel on the floor. Repeat 10 times.

The other uncommon sports injuries are fractures and bone dislocations. The above mentioned are the most common sports injuries.