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Sports Doc Posted: Thursday, September 17, 2015 I know, why in the world am I writing a blog post about a Dallas player? We know Dez Bryant is out next week after surgery on his 5th metatarsal. But will he be back for the November 8th game against Philadelphia which is 7 weeks away? Here is what we know. He fractured his 5th metatarsal Sunday and had surgery Monday. The team is giving a time frame of 4-6 weeks to return. What we don’t know if it’s it a mid-shaft fracture, a tuberosity fracture, a Jones fracture, or a diaphyseal fracture. These are all different fractures with different treatment options, return to play considerations, and complications. In a pro athlete, surgery to stabilize the fracture is almost always done regardless of the type of fracture. Screw fixation allows earlier weight bearing and rehabilitation, decreases the risk of malunion/non-union, and ultimately helps with a faster return to sports. Complications following surgery include malunion/non-union of the fracture, bending or breaking of the screw, re-fracture, and persistent pain that can limit athletic ability. What does Dez’s rehab program look likely following surgery? Weight bearing typically begins around 7-10 days post-surgery. Running is often started around 6 weeks if early healing is occurring and the athlete doesn’t have pain. CT scans can be helpful to document healing of the fracture. Typical return to play in a high level athlete is 8-12 weeks. With Dez Bryant, the Cowboys will throw the kitchen sink at him to help speed up his recovery. This will likely include a bone stimulator to facilitate fracture healing; accelerated rehabilitation to regain flexibility, strength and balance as well as maintain fitness and football specific skills; and possibly other modalities that “may” influence recovery such as hyperbaric treatment, laser therapy, etc. A study published in 2015 in Foot & Ankle International looked at 25 consecutive NFL players who underwent surgery for 5th metatarsal fractures by a single surgeon. There was a 100% return to play with an average return in 8.7 weeks (range 5.9-13.6). The fastest return to play was 5.9 weeks. However, the fastest return to play for a wide receiver was 8 weeks. Re-fracture was fairly low with only 4 players experiencing re-fractures. So, will Dez be ready to play against the Eagles on November 8th? The statistics are not in his favor. And if he does play, it will likely be his first game back. Will he be performing at his pre-injury level by then? Time will tell but the research shows that Eagles will likely be putting together a game plan against a Dallas team that won’t include Dez Bryant.
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 Philly.com Sports Doc
Posted: Monday, May 12, 2014, 9:37 AM Unlike other collegiate sports, there have been no studies published on track and field injuries using the NCAA injury surveillance system. Therefore, we will look at the few studies that analyze injury prevalence in track and field. A 2005 article published by Zemper in the journal Medicine and Sports Science suggested that 70-80 percent of all track and field injuries are the result of running events. 75 percent of all injuries are to the lower extremity and the overwhelming majority of injuries occur during practice. A 2011 article by Jacobsson et al in the American Journal of Sports Medicine showed a strong dominance of overuse-related conditions such as tendinopathies and stress fractures in track and field athletes. These overuse injuries account from 60-90 percent of injuries in various published papers. An article by Alonso et al in 2012’s British Journal of Sports Medicine looked at track and field injuries during the period of the Daegu 2011 IAAF World Championships. Sprint events accounted for 27.7% of all injuries followed by long distance at 17.3%, and jump events at 14.1%. Let’s look at the some of the different events and the injuries that go along with them. Sprints and Relays The most common injury in sprint events is muscle strain, specifically hamstring strain. The mechanism of hamstring injuries is still being debated. These include neuromuscular inhibition, eccentric overload, over-striding, and decreased muscular endurance to name a few. To simplify hamstring injuries, these can be broken down into acute and chronic injuries. Acute hamstring injuries are the result of a distinct injury such as a sprinter pulling out of a race. These usually involved a tear of the hamstring muscle. These can be minor or more serve where bruising, swelling, and a defect are noted. Hamstring injuries can result in significant time away from training and competition, and early return frequently results in re-injury. Treatment involves management of pain in the acute phase of injury followed by rehabilitation to regain ROM, strength, and eccentric control prior to initiating a running program. Chronic hamstring pain can be due to a variety of underlying causes. These include incomplete rehabilitation from a previous hamstring injury, overuse injury, and referred pain from other areas such as the lumbar spine. A thorough evaluation from an athletic trainer or physical therapist is needed to determine the underlying cause and to develop an appropriate rehab program. Middle Distance Middle distance injuries are a combination of sprint injuries and distance injuries. The event distance and the training methods will dictate which type of injury is more likely to occur. As with any injury, the athlete should be evaluated by the team’s athletic trainer in order to develop an appropriate rehab program. Long distance Unlike sprints, long distance injuries are primarily overuse and repetitive stress injuries. These include sprains, strains, and tendinopathies as well as stress fractures, shin splints, and exertional compartment syndrome. Treatment should not only focus on resolving the symptoms but also include a thorough biomechanical evaluation to correct the underlying cause. This should include assessment of footwear, lower extremity alignment, and lower extremity flexibility and strength. This may also include modification of the athletes training program with decreases in frequency, intensity, and/or duration. Hurdles and Steeple Chase Hurdles and steeple chase have injuries similar to the above running events but also include more traumatic injuries. With hurdles, injuries can occur from hitting the hurdle or from catching a hurdle resulting in a fall or awkward landing. Steeple chase injuries can occur from stepping onto the obstacle, not clearing the obstacle, or landing from/over the obstacle. Traumatic injuries can include contusions, ligament sprains, knee internal derangements (meniscus tear, ACL injury) and fractures. These injuries should be evaluated by the team’s athletic trainer and treated accordingly or referred to a sports medicine physician for more serious injuries. These more serious injuries usually require significant time away from training and competition. Long jump and triple jump Long jump and triple jump are horizontal jumping events with specific associated injuries. These injuries can be broken down into overuse and traumatic. Overuse injures include tendinopathies and repetitive stress injuries as seen in other events and should be treated as noted previously. Traumatic injuries occur either at takeoff or landing and can include fractures, acute muscle tears, dislocations, serious ligament sprains (such as ankle sprains), tendon ruptures, and knee internal derangements. These more serious injuries should be evaluated by your team’s athletic trainer and referred to a sports medicine physician for appropriate care. These more serious injuries usually require significant time away from training and competition. High Jump and Pole Vault High jump and pole vault are vertical jumping events with similar injuries to horizontal jumping events. These injuries can also be broken down into overuse and traumatic. Besides the traumatic injuries noted for long and triple jump, pole vault accounts for almost all of the catastrophic injuries (fatal, non-fatal but causing permanent severe functional disability) and serious (no permanent disability, but a severe injury). These more serious injuries should be evaluated by your athletic trainer and referred to a sports medicine physician for appropriate care. These injuries usually require significant time away from training and competition. Javelin, shot put, hammer, and discus Throwing events account for the vast majority of upper extremity injuries in track and field. These include injuries to the rotator cuff and shoulder labrum as well as abdominal injuries from the rotational throws, and lower extremity injuries from planting during a throw. One injury specific to the javelin is an ulnar collateral ligament tear (Tommy John injury). UCL injuries in javelin are due to the throwing motion and the stress incurred at the elbow, similar to baseball. Throwing injuries need to be evaluated by the team’s athletic trainer and either treated conservatively through rest and rehabilitation or referred to a sports medicine physician when more a more serious injury occurs such as an ulnar collateral ligament tear. Exertional heat illness Lastly, environmental factors can cause heat related illness in track and field athletes. Athletes, coaches, and medical staff need to be aware of the environmental conditions (heat and humidity) and monitor athletes for any signs or symptoms of heat illness. Heat illness is an urgent and sometimes emergent issue and needs to be address by the event’s medical staff. Signs and symptoms can include finding it hard or impossible to keep playing, loss of coordination, dizziness or fainting, profuse sweating or pale skin, headache, nausea, vomiting or diarrhea, and stomach/intestinal cramps or persistent muscle cramps. To truly evaluate an athlete for heat related injury, an accurate core body temperature needs to be assessed by a trained medical professional such as an athletic trainer. Cooling measures should be implemented with the best method being ice immersion. For those athletes with a core temperature over 104° and showing signs or symptoms of heat illness, immediate cooling should be implemented and emergency response should be initiated as heat stroke is likely. The National Athletic Trainers Association has an excellent web page on How to recognize, prevent, & treat exertional heat illness: http://www.nata.org/nr072606 As you can see, not only do we see lower extremity injuries in track and field, we also see upper extremity injuries and environment injuries such as exertional heat illness. Although most of the injuries are minor, there are urgent and emergent injuries in track and field and these are best managed by the team’s athletic trainer and medical staff.  (AP Photo/The Oregonian, Ross William Hamilton) Philly.com Sports Doc POSTED: MONDAY, MARCH 24, 2014, 9:40 AM Baseball and softball may be similar sports, but the injury data differs quite a bit. Let’s see what the research says. Injury statistics A 2007 paper in the Journal of Athletic Training looked at softball injuries from 1988-2004 using the NCAA injury surveillance system. Over the 16 years of data collection, the rate of injury was 1.6 times higher in games than in practices (4.3 versus 2.7 injuries per 1000 athlete-exposures). Preseason injury rates were more than double the regular season injury rates. Postseason injury rates were lower than preseason and in-season rates. 43% of injuries occurred to the lower extremity while 33% were to the upper extremity. For game injuries, ankle sprains and knee internal derangements accounted for 19% of all injuries. Concussions accounted for 6% of all game injuries and players were 3 times more likely to sustain a concussion and 2 times more likely to suffer a knee internal derangement in a game versus practice. Of the three mechanisms of injury, contact with something other than another player accounted for 51% of all game injuries followed by non-contact at 27%. Sliding was the highest mechanism for game injuries at 27% while only accounting for a small percentage of practice injuries. Non-contact injuries accounted for 55% of all practice injuries. When looking at injury severity, more than 22% of all game and practice injuries required time missed from participation of 10 days or more. Knee internal derangements and ankle ligament sprains accounted for the majority of injuries requiring time away from sports (30.4%). In games, the base runner, batter, pitcher, and catcher were the positions with the highest risk of injury. (62.3%) Upper Extremity Upper extremity injuries are significantly less common in softball than baseball. This is likely due to the underhand pitching motion for softball which places less stress on the shoulder and elbow. Although injuries such as rotator cuff and labral tears do occur, they are not common in softball. The majority of upper extremity injuries are traumatic injuries to the shoulder wrist and hand such as fractures and dislocations. These traumatic injuries should be evaluated by your athletic trainer who will refer to a sports medicine physician for more server injuries such as dislocations and fractures. Minor injuries such as sprains and strains are usually treated with rest, rehabilitation, and taping/bracing if needed. Lower Extremity Ankle sprains and knee internal derangements are the most common softball injuries. Combined, they account for more than 22% of all injuries requiring 10+ days away from participation. Ankle sprains are the most common injury in softball and are usually the result of sliding into a base. The majority of ankle sprains are minor injuries and can be treated conservatively. Treatment can involve a short time off from play (if needed) with rehabilitation consisting of regaining range of motion/flexibility, strength, and balance. All of this should be done under the guidance of an athletic trainer or physical therapist. Knee internal derangements are the second most common injury and consist primarily of meniscal tears and ACL tears. Whereas ACL injuries require a surgical consult and are almost always season ending, some athletes are able to finish their season with meniscal tears if they are only mildly symptomatic. Once again, a consultation with an orthopedic surgeon should be made to discuss the severity of the injury and treatment options. Other injuries Softball has almost twice as many concussions during games as baseball. This is likely due to the shorter distance to the pitching mound and the smaller infield. The shorter pitching distances may place batters at increased risk of being hit by a pitch. The smaller infield places the players closer to the batter giving less time to react in order to avoid being hit by a batted ball. The smaller infield may also increase the risk of contact with another player. As we have learned from contact sports such as football and hockey, concussions are serious injuries and should be treated as such. An evaluation by a sports medicine clinician trained in concussion assessment should be performed in order to develop an appropriate treatment plan. This may include time away from the classroom as well as from the playing field. Unlike baseball, lower extremity injuries account for the majority of both minor and severe injuries in softball. As with any injury, players should be evaluated by a sports medicine specialist and an appropriate plan of care should be developed.  Philly Sports Doc
Justin Shaginaw, M.P.T., A.T.C. Posted: Monday, March 10, 2014 It’s that time of year. Spring sports are in the air, even if the spring weather isn’t. Let’s head to the ballpark and start with baseball. Upper Extremity Upper extremity injuries are the most common area injured for both college and pro baseball players. Shoulder injuries account for approximately 20 percent of all injuries in both pro and college players. These injuries include dislocations, sprains and strains, labral injuries, and rotator cuff injuries. Stats and facts about baseball injuries Dislocations are an emergent injury and immediate medical attention should be sought. In the above research studies, injuries diagnosed as sprains and strains were likely either misdiagnosed or players were given this diagnosis to down play the severity of the injury. Sprains and strains are more likely an underlying rotator cuff or labral injury. Both of these are usually the result of a kinetic chain dysfunction, which is like having your car’s steering out of alignment. By correcting the alignment issues, most shoulder problems can be resolved as long as they haven’t passed the point of no return. Once this happens, surgery is usually the only option to truly fix the problem. Elbow injuries account for approximately 16 percent of pro and 8 percent of college injuries. These injuries include sprains and strains, contusions, and more severe injuries such as ulnar collateral ligament injuries (Tommy John) and posterior impingement. As with the shoulder, elbow injuries diagnosed as sprains and strains were either misdiagnosed or players were given this diagnosis to down play the severity of the injury. Elbow sprains and strains are more likely the precursor to an ulnar collateral injury. And just as in the shoulder, by correcting alignment issues, most elbow problems can be resolved as long as they haven’t passed the point of no return. Pediatric and early adolescent shoulder and elbow injuries need to be assessed by a physician who specializes in pediatric sports medicine. These injuries can be different than the adult injuries due to open growth plates. Two such examples are little leaguer’s elbow and osteochondritis dissecans (OCD). These injuries are the result of throwing too much and overloading the elbow. This is why pitch counts are so important in little league through high school aged players. The first step in treating upper extremity problems in a throwing athlete is to be evaluated by a sports medicine clinician who specializes in the assessment of the kinetic chain. These problems include loss of shoulder range of motion (specifically internal rotation), scapular dyskinesia (shoulder blade weakness/abnormal movement), trunk and hip range of motion, core strength/stability, balance, and lower extremity flexibility and strength (specifically hip rotation range of motion and gluteus medius strength). Rehabilitation is the first step in correcting the underlying kinetic chain issues. Please be aware that not all rehab is the same. An athlete that did rehab and did not get better may not have done the correct rehab. Players should not throw until significant improvement has been made with rehab. In cases where players do not improve with the correct rehab, surgical consultation is the next step if the athlete wants to continue to play. Lower Extremity The 3 main lower extremity injuries in baseball are:
Hand/wrist Hand and wrist injuries account for approximately 10 percent of baseball injuries. These can be minor such as contusions to more serious injuries such as fractures and dislocations. The majority of these injuries are from being hit by a pitch or from sliding. Hand and wrist injuries should be evaluated by your athletic trainer who will refer to a sports medicine physician for more server injuries such as dislocations and fractures. Minor injuries are usually treated with rest, rehabilitation, and taping/bracing if needed. Other injuries Facial injuries are rare in baseball. When they occur, they are usually the result of being hit by a pitch. Examples of these injuries include facial fractures and eye injuries. These can be very serious and need immediate medical attention. Other less common injuries seen in baseball include core injuries/sports hernia, back/neck pain, and foot injuries. All of these should be initially evaluated by your athletic trainer who can develop an appropriate rehab plan as these injuries are usually minor and resolve with conservative treatment. As you can see, upper extremity injuries in baseball are the most common and tend to be the ones that will cause significant time missed from play. The cause of most shoulder and elbow injuries is an underlying kinetic chain problem. Brian Cammarota, MEd, ATC, CSCS, CES, another contributor to the Sports Doc blog, has some great posts on kinetic chain problems, throwing programs, and injury prevention for throwers. Please review some of his posts for further insight into upper extremity injuries in throwers.  Justin Shaginaw, M.P.T., A.T.C.
POSTED: WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 5, 2014, 6:00 AM This is the last blog of a three part series on winter scholastic sports. Let’s head to the mat. Sprains/Strains Sprains and strains account for nearly half of all wrestling injuries with the shoulder being more common in high school wrestlers and the knee more common in college. About 40 percent of those injured return to the mat within 1 week. These injuries should be evaluated by your team’s athletic trainer and appropriate treatment plan developed. This usually includes some time off the mat, rehabilitation exercises (strengthening, stretching, balance, etc), and modalities (heat, ice, etc). For more serious injuries, schedule an appointment with a sports medicine physician for further work up (x-rays, MRI, etc) and other treatment options . Dislocations/subluxations Dislocations/subluxations account for approximately 10% of all wrestling injuries. These are urgent and often times emergent injuries requiring immediate care from an athletic trainer followed by a referral to a sports medicine physician or the emergency room. These injuries most commonly occur to the shoulder, elbow, and patella and require a prolonged period off the mat and rehabilitation. Lacerations Lacerations are much more common in college wrestling and account for approximately 10 percent of collegiate injuries. These injuries vary in severity with some being managed by your athletic trainer with an immediate return to practice or the match while others require physician referral for sutures. Suturing may require a period of time off the mat depending on the location. Fractures Fractures are the second most common injury in high school wrestlers accounting for approximately 15 percent of all injuries. These are emergent injuries requiring immediate care from an athletic trainer and referral to a sports medicine physician or the emergency room. Fractures require a significant period of time off the mat and are often season-ending. Concussions Concussions account for approximately 5 percent of injuries for both high school and college wrestlers. The majority of concussions resolve within a week. A small portion will require a prolonged recovery period and may require a significant amount of time away from the sport. All concussions should be taken seriously and evaluated initially by the team’s athletic trainer with a referral to s sports medicine physician trained in evaluation and management of athletic concussions. Skin infections Skin infections represented 8.5% and 20.3% of all reported high school and college adverse events respectively.
All wrestlers with a skin infection should be evaluated by a physician for appropriate medical treatment as dictated by National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS) and the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). Wrestlers will also need a clearance letter from their physician clearing them to return to practice and competition. There are also prophylactic treatment options for some dermatologic conditions such as herpes which can be prescribed by a physician. Wrestling injuries are usually due to the combative nature of the sport. As you can see, sprains and strains account for the majority of wrestling injuries. Most of these are minor and can be managed conservatively with a quick return to sports. The above treatment recommendations are just a guideline and any injury should be evaluated by your team’s athletic trainer or a sports medicine physician to accurately diagnose the injury and provide appropriate care. Justin Shaginaw, M.P.T., A.T.C.
POSTED: WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 5, 2014, 6:00 AM A 2008 article by Yard et al in The American Journal of Sports Medicine calculated rates of injury among high school and college wrestlers during the 2005-2006 season using the High School Reporting Information Online (RIOTM) and the NCAA Injury Surveillance System (ISS). It also characterized the incidence and type injuries and compared risk factors for high school and college wrestling injuries. There were 387 injuries among participating high school wrestlers during 166,279 athlete-exposures, for an injury rate of 2.33 injuries per 1000 athlete-exposures (AE). 258 injuries occurred among college wrestlers during 35,599 athlete-exposures, for an injury rate of 7.25 injuries per 1000 AE. The injury rate was higher in college than in high school. Injury rates were higher in matches than in practices for both high school and college. Strains/sprains accounted for approximately half of all high school (48.1%) and college (49.2%) injuries. The most common high school injury sites were the shoulder (18.6%) and knee (15.4%) while the knee (24.8%), shoulder (17.8%), and head/face (16.6%) were most common in college. The most frequent high school injuries were:
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Justin Shaginaw, MPT, ATC, Aria 3B Orthopaedic Institute, Athletic Trainer - US Soccer Federation POSTED: MONDAY, JANUARY 27, 2014, 9:40 AM My last blog was about basketball injuries. Let’s dive into the pool and talk about common swimming injuries. Swimming Mechanics Poor swimming mechanics may be a contributing factor in many swimming injuries. But assessing these mechanics is beyond the expertise of most sports medicine. Your swimming stroke should be assessed by your coach, taking into account your specific injury, in order to eliminate an underlying biomechanical cause. A team approach should be taken with swimming injuries incorporating these stroke changes along with a specific rehabilitation program from your athletic trainer or sports medicine provider. Shoulder/Upper Arm Shoulder/upper arm injuries are the most common body area injured in swimming. These injuries can generally be categorized into two causes: flexibility and strength issues. From a flexibility stand point, shoulder injuries are usually from being too loose (hypermobile) or too tight (hypomobile). Hypermobility allows the shoulder ball to subtly move around in socket where hypomobility stresses shoulder structures due to lack of flexibility. Strength issues are usually seen as problems with scapular (shoulder blade) positioning and stability. Shoulder injuries should be thoroughly evaluated by your team’s athletic trainer or a sports medicine specialist to assess the underlying cause of the problem and develop an appropriate treatment plan which may include time out of the pool, rehabilitation, medications, injection, and even surgery when indicated. Common diagnoses include rotator cuff tendonitis/impingement, biceps tendonitis, rotator cuff tear, and labral tear. Spine Neck and back injuries are the second most common behind the shoulder. Swimming puts significant stress on the spine, specifically rotational stress on the cervical and thoracic spine. Common diagnoses include sprain/strain, spondylolysis, and disc derangement (bulge, herniation, etc). As with the shoulder, these injuries should be evaluated thoroughly by your team’s athletic trainer or a sports medicine specialist to assess the problem and develop an appropriate treatment plan which usually includes time out of the pool, rehabilitation, and medication. Lower Extremity Hip pain is an uncommon problem in swimming and is more frequently associated with the breast stroke due to the rotational motion of the kick. Some common diagnoses for hip pain in swimmers include sprain/strain, femoral acetabular impingement, and labral injuries. As with the shoulder, these injuries can generally be categorized into two causes: flexibility (hyper or hypomobility) and strength issues. Your team’s athletic trainer should assess the injury and either provide an appropriate rehabilitation program or refer the athlete to a sports medicine physician for further evaluation and treatment options. Patellofemoral pain is another uncommon problem in swimming. It is also known as anterior knee pain or chondromalacia and its main symptom is pain behind the knee cap. More common in females than males, patellofemoral pain is usually the result of overuse from the kicking motion involved in swimming. The first line of treatment is an evaluation by your team’s athletic trainer to put together an appropriate rehabilitation program including lower extremity stretching and strengthening. It may also require some time out of the water to allow the symptoms to subside. Patellofemoral pain from swimming is of a different etiology than weight-bearing sports where the underlying problem is a biomechanical/kinetic chain dysfunction. Elbow/Wrist/Hand Hand and wrist injuries are relatively uncommon in swimming. They include finger sprains/fractures from contact with the wall and overuse injuries of the elbow and wrist such as sprains/strains and tendonitis. Finger injuries should be evaluated by your athletic trainer and referred to a sports medicine physician if a fracture is suspected. Overuse injuries are usually the result of overtraining or poor swimming mechanics. These injuries should also be evaluated by your athletic trainer. Treatment may include time out of the pool, rehabilitation, and referral to a sports medicine specialist if indicated. As you can see, upper extremity injuries account for the majority of swimming injuries. Many of these are minor and can be managed conservatively with a quick return to sports. The above treatment recommendations are just a guideline and any injury should be evaluated by your team’s athletic trainer or a sports medicine physician to accurately diagnose the injury and provide appropriate care. Swimming injury prevention brochure from the STOP (Sports Trauma and Overuse Prevention) Sports Injuries program:  Philly.com Sports Doc
Justin Shaginaw, MPT, ATC, Aria 3B Orthopaedic Institute, Athletic Trainer - US Soccer Federation Robert Senior, Sports Doc blog Editor Posted: Monday, January 13, 2014, 6:00 AM The winter sports season is in full swing. In gyms everywhere the squeak of basketball shoes on the court can be heard. Along with the layups and 3 pointers, there are common injuries that occur. Let’s talk about some of these common basketball injuries and the appropriate treatment. Ankle Sprains This is the most common injury in basketball, accounting for 24.6 percent of women’s game injuries and 26.2 percent for men. It occurs when the foot rolls inward spraining the ligaments on the outside of the ankle. Swelling and bruising often occur with the severity of the injury dictating the athlete’s ability to return to play. Mild ankle sprains can return fairly quickly, sometimes even in the same game with taping or a brace. More serve injuries can take weeks to months to recover. Immediate treatment involves immobilization and ice followed by range of motion, strengthening, and balance/proprioceptive exercises. For athletes that cannot bear weight on their foot, they should be put on crutches and see a physician to rule out a fracture as well as assess the extent of the injury. For prevention, taping and bracing has been shown to reduce the rate of ankle injuries in sports. Stress Injuries Stress injuries (shin splints, stress fracture, etc) are another common basketball injury, usually seen during preseason as athletes transition from softer outdoor fields in fall sports to the hard indoor courts. Initially, symptoms are only with activity. As the problem worsens, pain can occur with walking and even at rest. If not addressed early, it can lead to a stress fracture requiring the patient to stop sports for a prolonged period of time. The common locations of these injuries are the tibia, medial malleolus, fifth metatarsal, and navicular. Initial treatment involves decreasing impact activities until symptoms resolve and assessing the athlete’s feet for appropriate shoes and possibly supportive inserts. It’s also a good idea to progress practice intensity gradually to allow players to acclimate to the new playing surface. Players that do not respond to conservative measures should be seen by a sports medicine physician for further evaluation. ACL/Meniscus Knee injuries are the second most common injury in basketball, with ACL injuries being more common in female players. Both meniscal tears and ACL injuries are caused by deceleration and pivoting on a planted foot. The common signs of an internal knee injury include swelling and a feeling of a “pop” or “catching and locking.” Immediate treatment should include ice and crutches if the athlete cannot walk normally followed by a referral to a sports medicine doctor to diagnose the injury. Research has shown that ACL prevention programs have been effective in reducing the incidence of injury. Some well-known programs are the PEP program (http://smsmf.org/smsf-programs/pep-program), Sportsmetrics (http://sportsmetrics.org/), and the FIFA 11+ program (http://f-marc.com/11plus/home/) . Although some of these are sports specific, they can be easily modified for basketball. Patellar Tendinopathy Commonly known as patellar tendonitis or jumper’s knee, this injury presents as pain and tenderness of the patellar tendon. The mechanism of injury is believed to be due to repetitive strain to the tendon from jumping, cutting, and deceleration activities involved in basketball. Treatment includes limiting activity until symptoms improve, as well as ice, quad stretching, eccentric quadriceps exercises, and soft tissue treatments. Patellar tendon straps can also be beneficial. In more chronic cases, medications, injection therapies, and surgery are other options. In younger patients whose growth plates are not closed, usually under 15, Osgood-Schlatter syndrome is more common. This is an injury to the attachment of the patellar tendon to the tibia. The tendon actually pulls away from the bone causing a boney protuberance that can become painful and tender. The treatment for Osgood-Schlatter syndrome is rest and ice as it is almost always self-limiting. Hand Injuries Finger injuries are fairly common in basketball and occur when players “jam” their fingers on the ball. The injuries are usually simple sprains that can be treated symptomatically with ice and buddy taping. Occasionally these injuries can be more serious such a fracture and tendon rupture. If the player’s finger looks deformed or if they are unable to move it, they should be evaluated by a sports medicine physician to accurately diagnose the injury. Upper Extremity Shoulder injuries are relatively rare in basketball with the most common being dislocations and labral tears. These injuries usually occur when a player is blocked during a shot forcing the arm backwards. For a dislocation, urgent treatment should be sought from the team’s athletic trainer and a physician if necessary. Labral tears should be considered for players with chronic shoulder pain with overhead activities such as shooting, and an appointment with a sports medicine physician should be schedule to accurately diagnose the injury. The other upper extremity injury seen in basketball is a fracture. These usually occur from falling on an outstretched arm. As with dislocations, the player should be evaluated by the team’s athletic trainer and referred to a physician for urgent care. As you can see, lower extremity injuries account for the majority of basketball injuries. Many of these are minor and can be managed conservatively with a quick return to sports. With more serious injuries such as ligament/tendon ruptures and fractures, urgent care by a sports medicine physician is advised. The above treatment recommendations are just a guideline and any injury should be evaluated by your team’s athletic trainer or a sports medicine physician to accurately diagnose the injury and provide appropriate care. |
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