Overuse Injury

Injury and Injury Prevention Injuries that happen during sporting events are the some of the most commonly seen injuries among doctors and paramedics. The following paragraphs will cover types of injuries, evaluation and treatment, and injury prevention.

When someone is injured during a sports game it is very important to get accurate information before treating them. To get this proper information, we use the acronym “HOPE” to walk through all the steps. The first thing to do is to ask about their history. Asking things such as “how did this happen?” or “has it happened before?” can help you figure out what the damage is. The next thing to do is to observe the injury for breaks, swelling, muscle displacement, redness, lack of movement…etc.
Three very commonly seen sports injuries are overuse injuries, strains, and skeletal injuries. An overuse injury falls into the soft tissue injury category. Overuse injuries are subtle and usually occur over time, making them challenging to diagnose and treat. They are the result of repetitive micro-trauma to the tendons, bones, and joints. Common examples include tennis elbow, swimmers shoulder, pitching elbow, runners knee, Achilles tendinitis, and shin splints. Te best way to treat an overuse injury is to stay off it for a while, then reduce intensity when returning to play. Strains are also a very common injury in sporting events. A strain occurs when there is too much pressure being put on a muscle or if it is pushed too far. Common reasons for strains are not warming up properly or returning to a sport after an off-season. Strains are classified into three categories; mild, moderate, and severe. An athlete only needs to see a doctor if it is a severe strain. The proper treatment procedure for muscle strains is the acronym talked about above; “PRICE”. Last but not least, probably the most seen injury in sporting events, skeletal injuries. A skeletal injury is the breakage of a bone, referred to as a fracture. There are several types of fractures, but the main two are “compound fractures” and “simple fractures”. A simple fracture is broken in two or more pieces but does not penetrate through the skin. A compound fracture is much more painful, this is when the broken bone protrudes the skin. Depending on which bone is fractured, the treatment is usually a cast, in some cases it may be a