Sports Injuries
If you’ve ever suffered a sports injury, you’re familiar with the pain and discomfort involved. Sports injuries most commonly affect your musculoskeletal system, which includes your bones, muscles, tendons, ligaments, and surrounding tissue. They may be caused by sudden trauma, such as a football tackle, or by repetitive motion, such as the action a baseball pitcher completes during a game.
Sports injuries may be acute, meaning they happen suddenly. Or, they may be chronic, such as the kind that occurs over time. Your physical therapist in Woodstown, NJ, can diagnose and treat common sports injuries to bring relief and restoration to the affected area.
What Are the Most Common Sports Injuries?
The most common sports injuries include:
- Sprains
- Strains
- Fractures
- Dislocations
- Rotator cuff injuries
- Injuries to the Achilles tendon
These types of injuries can happen to anyone, but when they happen as a result of physical activity, we refer to them as sports injuries. Often, activities such as football, basketball, baseball, running, or general exercise are involved. Sports injuries happen to people of all ages, but we most often see them in younger adults.
How Will I Know If I Have a Sports Injury?
The symptoms of sports injuries can vary widely, depending upon the type of problem. Some symptoms, however, are somewhat universal. And if you engage in regular physical activity and note one or more of the following issues, a visit to your physician is recommended:
- Any type of sudden, severe pain in bone or muscle
- Visible swelling or bruising
- Inability to move a joint
- Inability to place pressure on the injured area, such as a foot or ankle
- Pain or weakness when you move the affected limb
- Dull ache in the area when at rest
The problem may appear suddenly, after moving the wrong way or after suffering a blow. Or, it may develop in stages and worsen over time. Both types of injuries are usually treatable through physical therapy, which can ease your pain and restore mobility to the area.
How Does Physical Therapy Treat Sports-Related Injuries?
Physical therapy helps restore range-of-motion and rebuild strength in an athlete following a sports injury. Usually, your injury will be diagnosed before you see your physical therapist, but your PT will then evaluate and assess the scope of the problem and devise a treatment plan to ease pain, restore function, and help prevent future injury.
If you’re struggling with sports-related pain in Woodstown, NJ, or the surrounding area, Woodstown Physical Therapy can help. Call today to schedule a consultation.
Sources:
https://medlineplus.gov/sportsinjuries.html
