Sport Injuries

The way that physical therapy can help you after a sports injury depends a lot on the type of sports injury.  Some injuries are acute and traumatic in nature such as a collision in football.  Others are more chronic in nature, such as shin splints, which may linger throughout the season and ultimately impair your performance.

Baseball: rotator cuff tendonitis/strain, medial elbow pain, hip strains

Football: ankle sprains, knee sprains, fractures

Dance: foot strains/sprains, hip labral injuries, patellar tendonitis

Golf: rotator cuff tendonitis, low back pain, tennis elbow

Softball: shoulder pain, low back pain

Soccer: ankle sprains, ACL tears, hamstring strains

Volleyball: wrist and hand injuries, patella-femoral pain, shoulder sprains

Basketball: ankle sprains, ACL tears, jumper’s knee

Lacrosse: sprains and strains, contusions

Tennis: shoulder impingement, tennis elbow, meniscal injuries

Runners/Track and Field: shin splints, plantar fasciitis, ITB tendonitis

This list includes the most commonly seen injuries in each sport, but is not all inclusive.  Each of these injuries can be serious, and medical attention should always be sought out to determine the severity of the injury as well as the best treatment available. In many cases, physical therapy can be started immediately after the initial injury, which will speed recovery and reduce pain and discomfort.  This helps to eliminate compensation and poor movement patterns down the road. The specific treatment strategies employed by physical therapy vary as widely as the types of sports injuries.  Usually, many techniques are applied during the course of treatment of treatment as the patient progresses. Using evidenced based medicine helps us deliver excellent outcomes for our patients.

HOW PHYSICAL THERAPY CAN HELP SPORTS INJURIES

Sports care involves the understanding of many factors; whether the athlete is in season or off season, what the physical needs of their sport are (hitting, kicking, throwing), the use of equipment, the athlete’s position, and the type and severity of their injury.  Often athletes are told to “just shut it down for a couple of weeks” (there are exceptions like fractures and surgery).  However, this is not always the best answer.  Rest should be relative, rest from abuse, not rest from activity.  When you shut an athlete down for 2 weeks and then return them to the same environment they were hurt in, the potential for continued pain and injury remains.  Now the athlete has lost 2 weeks of training as well as 2 weeks of the competition season.  This is a lose-lose situation.

For example, a baseball player with a shoulder injury has different needs than a football player.  Furthermore, a lineman has different needs (pushing-pushing) than a wide receiver (catching).  Specific exercise must be designed for each rehab program.  Another factor may be the modification in playing parameters.  A baseball player may have elbow pain from pitching, but not have any pain with batting.  In this instance, the athlete may be able to be a designated hitter while they continue their rehab program.  Furthermore, it is possible they may be able to throw the ball from in the field (like 2nd base) if they have no pain and just be limited from a pitching perspective.  Working with a sports physical therapist can help guide this process and limit in season downtime.  Individualized care is essential to this process - no two athletes and their injuries are the same.