Overuse Foot and Ankle Injuries in Gymnasts
Foot and ankle injuries can occur during various sports, but a shoe or cleat may protect the foot from more severe injuries. However, some sports are performed barefoot, such as gymnastics. Gymnasts have high demands on their feet and ankle, especially when landing their skills on vault, bars, floor, and beam. Gymnastics places high impact forces and high repetitions on growing young athletes. Gymnasts train all year and are therefore susceptible to overuse injuries.
PT Travel Hacks for Pain-free Vacation
Traveling should be fun and not a precursor to injury. Use these tips to help make your next trip as pain-free as possible.
Hand and Wrist Injuries in Gymnasts
Gymnastics is a unique sport where athletes spend a large amount of time on their hands. Handstands, tumbling, rings, and bars require the athlete to place their entire body weight through the arms and into the hands. Other sports do not place these heavy demands on the upper extremity. When tumbling, the athlete puts not only their entire body weight through the hands but can have up to 16 times their body weight in force going across the wrist2. No wonder 80% of gymnasts will experience wrist pain at some point in their career!6 In a study comparing injuries in male and female collegiate gymnasts, men suffered more hand and wrist injuries than their female counterparts1. We will be taking a closer look at the types of hand and wrist injuries both male and female gymnasts may experience and how to treat or prevent these injuries.
The Basics: Sprains, Strains, and Fractures…What’s The Difference?
“I sprained my hamstring!” “I didn’t break it. I fractured it.” “He had a bad ankle strain.” Physical therapists, occupational therapists, and most medical professionals cringe when we hear this at parties, in the media, or our clinic. The tactful among us do their best to resist the urge to correct, but let’s face it, we are only human.
Injury Prevention for Keeping Your Hands Healthy This Spring and Summer
Earlier months in the year have come and gone, and the routines of the cold weather months may be changing. Increased daylight hours have allowed for more time outdoors, participating in leisure and work. As the events that consume our free time begin to change, the physical demands on our bodies, specifically our hands, ought to be thought about and considered to prevent injury.
Common Spring Sports Overuse Injuries in High School Athletes
Contrary to what the snow on the ground has told you, spring sports are ramping up at the high school level across the states. And we all know what that means- beginning of season aches and pains. I’ll let you in on a little secret, we athletic trainers see a lot of the same injuries year after year at this time.
In the first few weeks of spring sports, there is a rise in visitors to the Athletic Training Room for overuse injuries. Let’s dig into some of the most common overuse injuries we see in spring and ways to prevent or manage them.
Common Hip Injuries in Dancers
Hip injuries in dancers comprise about 17.2% of all muscular and bony injuries. These injuries are often hard to diagnose because many have overlapping signs and symptoms. Injuries can occur for a variety of reasons. Some injuries are traumatic from a fall, contact, or another impact like a fracture or an avulsion (where a muscle can yank on its bony attachment and pull some bone loose). Additional injuries can come from overuse and result in tendinitis (or other tendinopathies), bursitis, snapping hip, strain, or a labral tear. Some are bony, like Femoral Acetabular Impingement (FAI) or dysplasia. Whatever the cause, a hip injury can be frustrating for a dancer.
5 Tips to Prevent Common Running Injuries
Running has become an increasingly popular activity for exercise among people of all ages. In fact, 60 million people within the United States participate in some form of running activity each year. People participate in running activities for numerous reasons including: improving fitness, weight concerns, running a race/competition, staying healthy, and having fun. Running for 5 – 10 minutes per day has shown to decrease the risk of death and cardiovascular disease. Running less than 50 minutes per week has also shown to reduce the risk of death from heart disease when compared to individuals who don’t participate in running at all. While running has many benefits, about 50% of people get injured each year from running. Running injuries can be caused by poor running technique, reduced strength and flexibility, improper footwear, as well as overuse.
