Sports injuries for an athlete can be the most frustrating things. No matter whether you are a professional player or just make your weekends full of fun with a cricket match, sports injuries can make everything difficult. Anyone who is active often gets strains, sprains, torn ligaments, and even fractures. Thankfully, recuperation can be quick if you choose the right treatment method and care. Yes, sports injury physiotherapy is considered the most effective and non-invasive way to recover faster than usual. By opting for this, you can let your body recover stronger and faster. By connecting with the right professional, you will be provided with access to high-tech tools, new-age therapies, and customised plans for better outcomes. Besides, check out this detailed post to understand sports injuries and learn about the athlete rehab tips.
Understanding sports injuries
As the name suggests, anything that you come across while playing or practising is considered a sports injury. They usually occur due to direct damage, overuse of muscles, incorrect techniques, or accidents/mishaps during the game or practice sessions. Below are some common types of sports injuries:
- Sprains
- Strains
- Ligament injuries, like ACL tearing
- Dislocations
- Tendonitis
- Muscle tears
- Shin splints
- Broken bones or fractures
- Knee pain
- Tennis elbow
Remember, your recovery from these sports injuries usually depends on how early you opt for sports physiotherapy and targeted treatment plans.
How can a physiotherapist help you with sports injuries?
As a sportsperson, you will definitely not want an injury to affect your performance or obstruct you during the game. Even after this, if you come across something unexpected, a physiotherapist will help you in the following manner:
- Accurate assessment and diagnosis.
A great and certified physiotherapist uses various techniques to do a thorough physical examination. They use high-tech tools to identify the severity of the injury. Based on the same, they decide on sports physio exercises and other relevant solutions.
- Managing discomfort and pain.
When you are in pain, it is harder for you to recover. Hence, a physiotherapist helps you control the pain you are going through. For this, they generally use heat and cold therapy, manual therapy, ultrasonic machines, and more. With these, they reduce the need for medicines.
- Inflammation control.
If you are experiencing inflammation and swelling, the sports injury physiotherapy treatment plan will also include the use of electrotherapy, cryotherapy, and compression therapy. These modern tools are typically used when you are in the early recovery stage. These are quite effective for reducing inflammation and swelling.
- Regain flexibility and motions.
In the next phase, you will be offered sports physio exercises so that you can regain the strength and flexibility of your muscles and joints. When inflammation gradually goes down, you will be able to indulge in the active and passive activities.
- Make your muscles and joints stronger.
Once you regain your basic movements, you will be offered strength training customised to your physical needs, keeping other factors in mind. The core objective of physiotherapy treatments is to make your muscles strong, stable, and flexible.
What are the tools that are used for sports injury treatment?
In physiotherapy, there are so many tools that are used to help a sportsperson recover faster. Here are some of the most popular ones:
- First and foremost, ultrasound therapy is used with high-frequency waves (sound) to improve the tissue repair process and reduce inflammation and pain.
- IFT or interferential therapy is also used to reduce pain, swelling, and muscular spasms. This is done by sending electrical signals with low frequency to the affected area.
- TENS, or Transcutaneous Electrical Nerve Stimulation, is yet another treatment plan that is used for sports injuries. Certain tools are used to stop the pain impulses so that you don’t feel them.
- Physiotherapists also use low-range laser therapy to ease discomfort, expedite tissue healing, and reduce pain.
- Equipment for electromyography or EMG is also used to help sportspersons with complicated injuries. Specialized machines are used to assess and record the skeletal muscles’ activities.
Depending on the needs, heat therapy and cryotherapy can also be used by the physiotherapist for sports injuries. In addition to this, they can also provide you with balancing boards, exercise balls, and resistance bands to improve balance and increase strength.
When to visit a physiotherapist for sports injuries?
Keep in mind that not every sports injury needs physiotherapy treatments. However, if you have the following, you can consider it for sure:
- Constant pain
- Trouble moving your joints
- Swelling
- Weak muscles
- Getting injured again and again
- Rehabilitation after a surgical process, i.e., meniscus, ACL, rotator cuff, and more.
Ultimately,
Sports injury physiotherapy is such a great solution, as it ensures faster healing, reduces pain, improves flexibility and strength, prevents the same injuries in the future, and boosts your overall performance. However, all these benefits are only possible if you connect with the right physiotherapist. For this, you can count on PHYSIO REVIVE.