"Know the Patient, Know the Sport, Know
the Injury"
Sports injuries may be simple
or complex. Treating the injury involves an understanding of the individual and his/her physical make-up, goals and aspirations,
an understanding of the sport and the mechanism of injury and an in depth knowledge of the functional anatomy of the human
body.
What to do when you get in injury
1. Stop what you are doing
2. Apply ice
3. If you think you have broken a bone, go to your local casualty department.
4. If you think you have strained or sprained something then rest
the injured area and elevate it if possible to limit the swelling. You do not have to stop using it altogether though –
just use it gently. If, for example you have sprained your ankle, the try to walk gently on it as you will recover more quickly.
If you are absolutely unable to weight bear, you may have sustained a fracture.
5. If there is excessive swelling then you may find a dose of an anti-inflammatory
such as ibuprofen to be helpful. You may need to take this regularly for 48 hours. Do not take if there
is any reason that you may think you could suffer a side effect. See download sheet at bottom of this page for further information.
6. Gradually introduce yourself back into your sporting activity, but do not rush.
You should consult a physician or physiotherapist if:
- the swelling is still significant after 3-5 days;
- the pain wakes you at night after 24 hours;
- you are finding
it difficult after 3 days to use the limb properly;
- you are finding it difficult to get back to playing your sport;
-
there was a possible transient dislocation at the time of injury.
You should also make sure you can identify why the injury occurred, otherwise it is likely to recur, see: Why Injuries Happen
For further information on recovery
from injury see: Why Isn't My Injury Better?
For further information on specific musculoskeletal
injuries, see: Find your Injury
