Sports injuries can occur while participating in training sessions, competitions or during organized sporting events. Oftentimes these types of injuries occur to children and teenagers due to improper training, lack of proper safety equipment or improper footwear. Teens are more susceptible because of their rapid growth rate during these years. Sports injuries are classified as either acute traumatic or chronic.
Acute Traumatic
A sudden single blow usually causes acute traumatic injuries. These can include fractures, contusions, which cause bleeding and swelling in muscles or tissues, strains due to overstretching a tendon or muscle, sprains from ligaments being torn, abrasions and lacerations that require stitches.
Chronic
Chronic injuries are usually a result of overuse that develops over time. These can occur from repetitive training such as serving a tennis ball, overhand pitching or running. Common types of injuries that occur from overuse include tendonitis, which is an inflammation of a tendon, stress fractures that cause tiny cracks in the surface of bones and apophysitis, which occurs from overusing muscles at growth plates. Apophysitis often affects the hip and pelvic growth plates and occur more often in teenagers between the ages of 14 and 18. When chronic injuries are left untreated, they do tend to become worse.
When to Seek Professional Medical Help
When pain from a sports related injury increases during activities and causes limited movement and/or swelling, a sports medicine specialist in Minnesota should be seen as soon as possible. Pain that includes numbness, swelling, and loss of motion, stiffness or tenderness can be a serious injury and needs medical attention if it persists for longer than a week. A sports medicine specialist in Minnesota can examine the injury and take x-rays and MRIs to diagnose the injury as well as determine how serious the injury is.
Treatments
After a thorough examination and a diagnosis, the sports medicine specialist will start treatment, which may include resting the injured area and applying ice to reduce swelling. Pain medication may also be prescribed and if needed, casts, splints or other devices to protect and prevent movement of the injured area may be used. The specialist may also recommend that the athlete refrain from participating in activities while the injury is healing or they may allow the patient to play, but only while wearing a protective device. Physical therapy may also be part of the treatment. Because these specialists are experts in treating sports related injures, they can provide the best treatment and advice on whether it is best to refrain from playing while the damage heals or if it is safe for the athlete to continue to participate in athletic events without causing further damage or risking another possible injury.
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