Injury Treatment

Sports injuries can be treated and managed by using the P.R.I.C.E.R... DR. ABC and T.O.T.A.P.S regimes:
P - Protect
R - Rest
I - Ice
C - Compression
E - Elevation
R - Referral
D - Danger
R - Response
A - Airway
B - Breathing
C - Circulation
T - Talk
O - Observe
T - Touch
A - Active movement
P - Passive movement
S - Skills test
The inflammatory stage typically lasts around 5 days and all treatment during this time is designed to address the cardinal signs of inflammation – pain, swelling, redness, heat and a loss of function.
Compression sportswear is becoming very popular with both professional and amateur athletes. These garments are thought to both reduce the risk of muscle injury and speed up muscle recovery.

Why athletes warm up

Athletes not only warm up to physically prepare their bodies for training or competition but also to mentally warm themselves up. Warm ups are a crucial part of performance. If completed correctly they enable the body to perform at its peak performing ability at the current time. There are three different types of warm ups; gradual increase of physical activity to raise the pulse (Eg. cycling), a joint mobility exercise, stretching and a sport related activity (Eg. dribbling for basketball). A warm up should be specific to the task required to perform in order to activate the correct energy systems and prepare the correct muscles. There are many beneficial effects from warm ups including; • Increased heart rate. This enables oxygen in the blood to travel faster meaning the muscles fatigue slower, also, the synovial fluid between the joints is produced more to reduce friction in the joints, the capillaries dilate and it lets more oxygen travel in the blood. • Higher temperature in the muscles. This decreases the thickness of the blood-letting the oxygen travel to different parts of the body quicker, it also decreases the viscosity within the muscle, removes lactic acid, lets the muscles fibres have greater extensibility and elasticity and an increase in force and contraction of muscles.

Types of warm-up

Ballistic Stretches: Ballistic Stretches (involving bouncing or jerking) are purported to help extend limbs more during exercise to allow an individual to be more agile and flexible. However this type of stretching can cause injury and is not generally recommended.
Static Stretches: Flexing the muscles to help prevent injury and allow greater flexibility and agility. Note that some sources discourage static stretching as muscles are more prone to damage if stretched while cold.

Why athletes warm up

Athletes not only warm up to physically prepare their bodies for training or competition but also to mentally warm themselves up. Warm ups are a crucial part of performance. If completed correctly they enable the body to perform at its peak performing ability at the current time. There are three different types of warm ups; gradual increase of physical activity to raise the pulse (Eg. cycling), a joint mobility exercise, stretching and a sport related activity (Eg. dribbling for basketball). A warm up should be specific to the task required to perform in order to activate the correct energy systems and prepare the correct muscles. There are many beneficial effects from warm ups including; • Increased heart rate. This enables oxygen in the blood to travel faster meaning the muscles fatigue slower, also, the synovial fluid between the joints is produced more to reduce friction in the joints, the capillaries dilate and it lets more oxygen travel in the blood. • Higher temperature in the muscles. This decreases the thickness of the blood-letting the oxygen travel to different parts of the body quicker, it also decreases the viscosity within the muscle, removes lactic acid, lets the muscles fibres have greater extensibility and elasticity and an increase in force and contraction of muscles.

Warm up Benefits

A warm-up will improve the effectiveness of training and should be done before every training session. This is fundamental to a safe practice.
Direct physical effects:
Release of adrenaline
Increased heart rate
Enables oxygen in the blood to travel with greater speed
Increased production of synovial fluid located between the joints to reduce friction
Allows joints to move more efficiently
Dilation of capillaries
Enables oxygen in the blood to travel at a higher volume
Increase of temperature in the muscles
Decreased viscosity of blood
Enables oxygen in the blood to travel with greater speed
Facilitates enzyme activity
Encourages the dissociation of oxygen from haemoglobin
Decreased viscosity within the muscle
Greater extensibility and elasticity of muscle fibres
Increased force and speed of contraction
Increase of muscle metabolism
Supply of energy through breakdown of glycogen
Increase in speed of nerve impulse conduction.
A comprehensive warm-up programme has been found to decrease injuries in soccer

Warming up

A warm-up is usually performed before participating in technical sports or exercising. A warm-up generally consists of a gradual increase in intensity in physical activity (pulse raiser), a joint mobility exercise, stretching and a sport related activity. For example, before running or playing an intense sport one might slowly jog to warm muscles and increase heart rate. It is important that warm ups should be specific to the exercise that will follow, which means that exercises (of warm up) should prepare the muscles to be used and to activate the energy systems that are required for that particular activity. The risks and benefits of combining stretching with warming up are mixed and in some cases disputed. Warming up prepares the body mentally & physically.

Mechanism

All of these traumatic injuries cause damage to the cells that make up the soft tissues. The dead and damaged cells release chemicals, which initiate an inflammatory response. Small blood vessels are damaged and opened up, producing bleeding within the tissue. In the body’s normal reaction, a small blood clot is formed in order to stop this bleeding and from this clot special cells (called fibroblasts) begin the healing process by laying down scar tissue.
The inflammatory stage is therefore the first phase of healing. However, too much of an inflammatory response in the early stage can mean that the healing process takes longer and a return to activity is delayed. The sports injury treatments are intended to minimize the inflammatory phase of an injury, so that the overall healing process is accelerated.

Prevention
A comprehensive warm-up programme has been found to decrease injuries in soccer

Classification of sports injuries

Sports injuries can be broadly classified as either traumatic or overuse injuries. Traumatic injuries account for most injuries in contact sports such as Football, Rugby, Australian rules football, Gaelic football and American football because of the dynamic and high collision nature of these sports. These injuries range from bruises and muscle strains, to fractures and head injuries.
A bruise or contusion is damage to small blood vessels which causes bleeding within the tissues. A muscle strain is a small tear of muscle fibers and a ligament sprain is a small tear of ligament tissue. The body’s response to these sports injuries is the same in the initial five day period immediately following the traumatic incident - inflammation.

Signs and symptoms
Inflammation is characterized by pain, localized swelling, heat, redness and a loss of function

Sports injury

Sports injuries are injuries that occur to athletes in major sporting events. In many cases, these types of injuries are due to overuse of a part of the body when participating in a certain activity. For example, runner's knee is a painful condition generally associated with running, while tennis elbow is a form of repetitive stress injury at the elbow, although it does not often occur with tennis players. Other types of injuries can be caused by a hard contact with something. This can often cause a broken bone or torn ligament or tendon
Injuries are a common occurrence in professional sports and most teams have a staff of Athletic Trainers and close connections to the medical community. Controversy has arisen at times when teams have made decisions that could threaten a players long-term health for short term gain.