Tag: Injury

Combating Muscle Fatigue

Athletes from amateur to professional level all experience muscle fatigue at some point. The people who tend to suffer the most however are surprisingly those who are less active. Many regard professional athletes as much more likely to have complications with muscle fatigue, however in terms of how the muscles use energy those who are less active than professionals are at a distinct disadvantage.

It is very important to understand that when you are working out, you are slowly wearing down the muscles and burning all of the energy that is provided to the muscles as well. Because of the energy that the muscles burn not being able to be replaced into the muscle quite as quickly as it is burned this causes muscle fatigue to become a problem. Sports medicine professionals are all well knowledgeable in exactly how to help professional athletes reduce the problems they experience from muscle fatigue.

In order to really combat the problems of muscle fatigue and keep it from happening, it is important to train the body to supply energy faster. Muscles receive energy in two different forms. The first is from oxygen, which creates aerobic metabolism; this is simply the process of creating adenosine triphosphate from oxygen. The other method is anaerobic metabolism, which is generated from stores of energy that are stored in the muscles themselves.

The problem that occurs most often in muscle fatigue is that anaerobic metabolism does not store huge amounts of energy and aerobic metabolism is a slower method to deliver energy to the muscles. This creates a problem for many people and results in them suddenly experiencing muscle fatigue. Professional athletes and those who are highly active are trained to help their bodies deliver energy from oxygen, which is the aerobic metabolism.

By training the body to efficiently and effectively deliver larger amounts of oxygen to the body it is possible to increase quickly the amount of energy that the muscles have available to use. This reduces the risk of muscle fatigue and allows a workout to continue for much longer. However, it takes several weeks or even months to train the body to effectively speed the flow of oxygen enough to keep from experiencing muscle fatigue based solely from a supply of aerobic metabolism.

In addition to learning ways to improve the flow of energy, it is also important for athletes to learn ways to reduce the use of muscles as much as possible to conserve energy. It is vital that energy management be controlled for athletes because without the control management many athletes would find themselves unable to workout or even complete their workout. This is never an advisable situation for any athlete; however, it can occur quite often.

In order to combat the symptoms and maximize the benefits of muscle energy it is important to work with your sports medicine physician as well as your trainer to ensure you are training your body to be as effective as possible. If you are careful and work closely with your trainer, coach and sports medicine doctor you can gather the best ways to encourage your body to conserve energy, while still increasing the flow of aerobic metabolism to your muscles.

Working towards an appropriate training method will help ensure that your muscles are as strong as possible and greatly reduce the risk of having a problem with muscle fatigue. There is plenty of professional help who can assist you in creating the best training plan possible to strengthen the muscles. Providing the maximum amount of energy to your muscles possible is the best thing you can do in order to ensure you stay as healthy as possible, with as little risk of injury as possible.

It is very important that you always discuss any concerns that you have with your doctor or coach. They can assist you in assuring that you take the proper precautions to ensure your body is carefully trained. If you have any doubts about your overall health, it is essential to talk to your doctor immediately.

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Children at Greatest Risk for Sports Injuries

The statistics all around the world are startling; children are much more likely to be injured while playing sports than an adult, even if they are only playing the occasional game. As parents and adults, how can we protect children from the majority of the injuries? There are some things you can do, both as treatment and as preventative to ensure that they are as protected as possible.

Your first concern should always be getting a physical check up of your child done before allowing them to actually play sports. This is absolutely imperative to let you know if there are any potential problems that you need to know about. While most children are healthy, there are some children that are not or that are highly prone to injuries. A good doctor should be able to let you know if your child can handle the physical activity of playing a sport.

Ensure your child has the appropriate safety equipment. Never allow them to play or practice without it. This can result in serious injuries as well as minor injuries, but it is always best to protect your child by ensuring that safety equipment is always worn. In addition, it is important to ensure that the safety equipment your child uses fits properly. This means that while it may be cheaper to pass down equipment from child to child, making sure it fits appropriately is even more important.

Other concerns should be ensuring that the coach your child plays with has been trained in how to interact with children, as well as teach them the rules of the game. Ensuring that all kids playing follow the rules is one of the best moves that coaches can make to help avoid injuries both during practice and during games. Teaching how to cheat will not only rob your child of sportsmanship but also increase the risk of injury immensely.

Make sure your child is playing with other children who are around the same size, as well as skill level. Common sense should tell you that a 5 year old should not be playing on the same team as a 15 year old. However, many parents do not realize just how important skill level can be. Having a child who is a beginner playing on an intermediate to advanced level team is a recipe for disaster and should be avoided. Always ask about the skill level of the team before signing up, if the team is too advanced for your child, find a team that is better suited.

Before your child starts any sport, regardless of age you should find a sports medicine doctor whom you are comfortable with as well as whom your child can talk to. This is important because many parents must deal with restrictions due to insurance and geographical location. Finding a doctor who is suitable before an injury occurs means you will spend less time waiting to start appropriate treatment in the event that an injury does occur. This also helps to ensure that you start your child on the appropriate foot in terms of preparing to be the safest and healthiest possible while playing sports.

As you can imagine, there are always numerous things to look out for in childhood. Injuries in sports just constitutes yet another potential danger, but with careful consideration and close supervision it is possible for most children to enjoy playing sports with very few, or minor injuries.

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Sprains and Strains in Adolescents

Sprains and strains are among the majority of the injuries caused while playing sports. Sports injuries can be caused by small trauma which involves ligaments, muscles and tendons including bruises, sprains and strains. The body part which is most commonly involved in spraining or straining is the ankle. The 3 ligaments that are involved during ankle sprain or strain include anterior talofubular ligament, posterior talofibular ligament and calcaneofibular ligament.

An injury caused to the soft tissue as a result of a direct force like fall, kick and blow is called a contusion or a bruise. A sprain is nothing but a ligament injury which is wrenched or twisted. Sprains usually affect knees, wrists and ankles. On the other hand a strain is an injury caused to a tendon or muscle which usually results from force, stretching and overuse.

Sprains/Strains are usually diagnosed by a physician after a physical examination. The physician asks for thorough medical history of the adolescent and asks various questions that lead to the cause of the injury. Various diagnostic procedures are also available which also helps in evaluating the problem. X-ray is one of the oldest and common diagnostic tests done to know the extent and exact location of the injury. An x-ray uses electromagnetic waves to get photos of internal tissues, organs and bones onto a film. MRI scan is one of the recently evolved diagnostic procedures which also help in evaluating a physical injury. This procedure actually called Magnetic Resonance Imaging makes use of bug magnets, computer and radio frequencies to get detailed pictures of structures and organs inside the body. Another diagnostic procedure called Computed Tomography Scan or CT scan is also used to evaluate the extent and location of injury. This procedure uses a blend of computers and x-rays to get cross sectional pictures in horizontal and vertical alignment. It shows thorough pictures of any part of the body like muscles, bones, fat and organs. They provide more information than conventional x-rays.

There are various symptoms of strain and sprain depending on each teens physical condition and they may vary accordingly. One of the symptoms includes pain in and around the area injury. There could also be a swelling around the injured area. Some teens also experience difficulty when they use or move the area of the body that is injured. Some teenagers also undergo bruises or redness in the area that is injured. Many times the symptoms of sprains and strains may look similar to other medical conditions and a doctors advice is the best option in this scenario.

Depending on various factors the treatment of sprains and strains will be prescribed by the teenagers physician that include teenagers age, overall health of the teenager, and medical history of the adolescent. To what extent the teen is injured is also a factor in determining the nature of treatment. A teenagers level of tolerance to certain medications, therapies and procedures is also taken into consideration before opting for a particular method of treatment. The treatment also depends of what expectations one has and also preference and opinion.

Various options available for treatment include things like restriction of the activity after the injury, application of cast/splint on the injured spot, crutches or wheelchair, physical therapy which involves stretching exercises to give strength to the muscles, tendons and ligaments that are injured and last but not the least is the surgery which is opted for in worst case scenario.

In the long-term scenario bruises, sprains and strains heal pretty quickly in kids and teenagers but it is important that the adolescent sticks to the restrictions imposed during the treatment and healing process like restriction of activity and regularly attending physical therapy sessions if any. It is noted that majority of the sports related injuries results either due to traumatic injury or excessive use of muscles and joints. But, they can be avoided and prevented with right training, by wearing right protective gears and by using right equipment for training.

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What the Future of Sports Medicine Holds

As sports medicine has developed over the years, the ideas of how to study and analyze both the athletes and their injuries has increased as well. As time progresses even further, this study is increased as new advances in medicine, training methods and even treatment options are further explored. What seems like science fiction now can very well become a real treatment in the future.

The idea of sports medicine is very unlikely to waiver. The primary reason being sports are such an integral part of life that most people simply cannot imagine their lives without them. This creates the need to continuously improve upon treatment options for injuries, and also leads to even further research and development required to help reduce the number of injuries that are experienced. While many forms of medicine are simply studying the treatment options heavily, and relying less on preventing problems sports medicine is focused on the long term commitment to athletes by reducing the risks of injury overall through proper training and fitness.

Continuously working to improve fitness and training techniques has ensured that regardless of the treatment options offered, sports medicine has secured itself a very safe home in the medical field. With thousands of new athletes each year starting sports there are always new injuries, as well as new considerations to take into account. These differences can often be a huge aspect when compared to the age of the athlete. Children tend to have more injuries at times, which is due to underdeveloped bones and muscles, while adults tend to have more serious injuries and take much longer to fully heal.

Combining all of the current research with the developments in surgery, fitness, and dietary fields allows sports medicine to continue to grow and encompass the majority of the athletes life. The desire to play sports for many is not simply a hobby, so selecting a doctor that views it as merely a hobby is unwise. Doctors in the sports medicine field are usually highly dedicated to their work. Putting forth diligent effort to reduce the amount of time to treat injuries, and helping improve the body following an injury are all continuous processes that undergo essential development.

Some of the biggest breakthroughs of recent sports medicine will eventually be classified as obsolete and new, exciting techniques and principals will replace them. Deciding how to carefully advance the research is in the hands of the well-trained doctors who have made it their lifes work to help each and every athlete improve their overall health and fitness levels.

From studying exercises to make small adjustments for a positive impact on the entire body, to making slight changes in the way surgery is performed to allow faster recovery times, to even increasing the effort put forth to ensure all athletes are following a healthy diet there is plenty of room for improvements and advances.

In addition to studying the body of the athlete themselves, sports medicine is starting to encompass the rules and structure of games themselves. For example, after a recent study of softball it was determined that breakaway bases should be used to help protect the players. This one small change was estimated to help reduce athlete injuries by as much as 90%. As you can see, sports medicine is encompassing so much more than simply traditional medical aspects as it moves towards the future.

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