Sports Injuries

Facts About Sports Injuries

Quick Facts About Sports Injuries

Acute sports injuries are those injuries that you receive when playing or exercising such as sprained ankles, back strains, and also fractures. Symptoms of an acute sports injury may include a sudden severe pain, swelling of skin or a joint

When dealing with sports injuries it is important to know the difference between an acute and a chronic injury.

Facts About Sports Injuries

Acute Sports Injuries:

Acute sports injuries are those injuries that you receive when playing or exercising such as sprained ankles, back strains, and also fractures. Symptoms of an acute sports injury may include a sudden severe pain, swelling of skin or a joint, not being able to bear weight on an ankle, foot, knee or leg and also tenderness of a finger, hand, elbow, or wrist. Not being able to move a joint is also another sign that you may have sustained an acute injury. If you feel extreme leg or arm weakness be aware that this can also be a sign of an acute injury. A visible sign of an acute sports injury would be if a bone or joint were noticeably out of normal placement.

Facts About Sports Injuries

Chronic Sports Injuries:

Chronic injuries are those you sustain after playing a sport for a long time or after prolonged exercising. Symptoms of chronic injuries would be if you experience pain often when you play, you have pain on a consistent basis while exercising, or when you experience a dull ache when you rest after participating in a sports game or after exercising. Swelling on a consistent basis after participating in sports or after exercising may also be an indication that you have a chronic injury. Chronic injuries are those that occur over a long period of time and are not an injury that has just occurred during play or exercise.

It is important to be seen by a doctor for any injury that you experience extreme pain, swelling, or numbness; if you cannot put any weight at all on an ankle, foot, knee or leg; an old injury hurts or aches really bad, an old injury swells up, or a joint is unstable or feels abnormal.

You can usually treat an injury at home as long as none of the above injury signs (listed above) occur. You should always call a doctor if pain or an injury worsens. Always get emergency help if severe bleeding occurs or if the individual is not breathing.

Facts About Sports Injuries

Home treatment for injuries:

If you experience any signs of injury, stop playing or exercising immediately.

There is a method of home treatment that works for sports injuries called, "RICE". R.I.C.E. stands for Rest, Ice, Compression, and elevation. This method relieves pain, is used to reduce swelling, and should speed healing of most sports injuries. You must use this method immediately after sustaining a sports injury and for the next 48 hours.

Rest:  Stay off of an injured limb use a crutch if necessary.

Ice: Ice an injured area for 20 minutes, at least four times a day and up to eight times a day. Use a cold pack or ice bag; just remember to never put ice directly onto skin, use a cloth between the cold and your skin. You can make an ice pack by placing crushed ice into a plastic bag and then wrapping that in a towel. Leaving an ice pack on for longer than 20 minutes can lead to cold injury.

Compression: This is when you place pressure on the injured area in order to reduce swelling. Use an elastic wrap that is specially made for this, a special boot, an air cast, or a splint.

Elevate:  Raising the injured limb or area on a pillow, at least level with your heart, will reduce swelling.

  Facts About Sports Injuries

Sports Injuries The most common sports injuries are Achilles tendon injuries, dislocations, fractures, knee injuries, sprains and strains, shinbone pain, and swollen muscles. Sports injuries can be caused by accident during the course of playing the sport or when exercising, or they can be the result of poor training, or improper gear and equipment.