Written by Editorial Team |Updated : June 26, 2019 10:28 AM IST
The ICC World Cup this year saw two crucial Indian cricketers getting injured. Bhubaneshwar Kumar suffered a tightness in his left hamstring and Shikhar Dhawan sustained a thumb injury. Well, any high intensity or high impact sporting activity makes even the fittest of players vulnerable to injuries. We have seen many sports persons getting dangerously injured.
Overuse and acute sprain and strain injuries are the most common sports injuries. An overuse injury occurs due to excessive wear and tear of the body, especially in areas subject to repeated activity. The major joints of the body, such as ankle, knee, hip, shoulder, elbow and wrist joints are subjected to overuse injuries. A strain injury is where fibres in a muscle or tendon tear because of overstretching. A sprain injury involves the overstretching and tearing of ligaments.
You can avoid sports injuries by suitable conditioning, enough warm up, appropriate footwear and correct techniques. For a major sprain or minor fractures, a doctor prescribes braces, athletes' tape or special shoes to provide support and enhance healing. But a severe injury will need surgery.
Cricket is the most popular sport in India and injuries are common among cricketeers. Ankle injury is at the top of the list of injuries suffered by cricketeers. Fast bowlers are prone to injuries under the big toe. Though impact-related foot and ankle injuries are not common, injuries due to overuse is seen very frequently.
A study published in The Journal of Science and Medicine in Sport examined the relationship between the bowling pressures of fast bowlers and injury. It was seen that when compared to bowlers with an average of 123 188 deliveries per week, bowlers with an average of fewer than 123 deliveries per week or more than 188 deliveries per week are at an increased risk of injury.
With the ICC Cricket World Cup going on, Dr. Anup Khatri, Consultant, orthopedics, Global Hospital, Mumbai, tells you all that you need to know about various types of foot injuries that seasoned sports persons including cricketers are prone to.
These are one of the most common foot injuries sports persons experience. The ankle is where your three bones meet. The tibia and fibula of your lower leg meet the talus of your foot and these bones are held together at the ankle joint by ligaments. These are strong elastic bands of connective tissue responsible for keeping the bones in place while allowing normal ankle motion. Tendons attach muscles to the bones to enable the movement of the ankle and foot. It also affords stability of your joints.
Ankle injury occurs when the ankle joint is twisted too far out of its normal position. Walking in high-heeled shoes or walking in unstable sandals can also put you at risk of ankle injuries. You can also injure yourself by tripping or falling, landing awkwardly after a jump, walking or running on uneven surfaces, twisting and rotating the ankle. Symptoms of ankle injury are swelling, tenderness, bruising, pain and stiffness.
In case, you suffer from any kind of ankle injuries, you should opt for RICE treatment (Rest, Ice, Compression, and Elevation). You must rest your ankle to avoid further damage and keep weight off it. Apply ice to reduce the swelling and ease the pain. You can also wrap the injured ankle with an elastic bandage to support it and keep it immobile. But, avoid compressing it too tightly. Elevating the injured ankle to at least the level of your heart will also help you get rid of the pain and swelling.
You must avoid exercising or playing sports when you are in pain. Increase your bone mineral density by opting for a well-balanced diet and keep your weight in check, wear the right kind of shoes, stay physically active and warm up and stretch before playing a sport.
A break in one or more of the bones is a fracture. Symptoms of a fracture are pain, swelling, bruising, immobility and discoloured skin in the affected area. Most fractures are treated in a non-invasive manner by immobilising the area with a cast. But in severe cases, surgery is needed.
Your expert may treat you without surgery by immobilising the ankle if only one bone is broken, and if the bones are not out of place and the ankle is stable. If the ankle is unstable, the fracture will be treated surgically. Not only this, your doctor will ask you to keep weight off the ankle so that the bones can heal in the proper alignment. Ligaments and tendons can take longer to heal after a fracture is fully mended. Thus, after your doctor has determined it is safe for you to start moving your ankle, you will be asked to opt for physical therapy to provide gait training, balance, strengthening and mobility exercises.
If your balance is poor, you will have to undergo balance training and physical therapy. Don't run on uneven surfaces and wear correct footwear.
This is damage to the ligaments when they are stretched beyond their normal range of motion. Symptoms of a sprain are swelling, tenderness, bruising, pain and stiffness. The treatment varies from person to person. It depends on the severity of the injury. They are graded as mild, moderate or severe. Mild sprains are dealt with the RICE approach for several days until the pain and swelling subside. Doctor also prescribes exercises.
Moderate sprains can be tackled by the RICE approach, but healing will be slow. Exercises will strengthen your ankle. Severe sprain involves a complete tear or rupture of a ligament and will require a lot of time to heal. It can be dealt with immobilisation of the joint followed by a longer period of physical therapy for a range of motion, including stretching and strength building. Moreover, one might also have to undergo surgery for reconstructing the torn ligaments.
Stretch before and after you undertake any physical activity and perform special exercises to improve your balance recommended by the doctor.
This can be defined as damage to muscles and tendons as a result of being pulled or stretched too far. Did you know? Muscle and tendon strains are more commonly seen in the legs and lower back. Symptoms include swelling, bruising or redness due to the injury, pain at rest, weakness of the muscle or tendons and inability to use the muscle at all.
To tackle it, you can opt for the RICE approach along with simple stretching exercises. Do not self-medicate as it can be risky. Take medications only after consulting your expert.
Muscle training, stretching and stability training under the guidance of an expert will keep the muscles strong and flexible.
This is injury of the ligaments around the big toe. This is common in football players who play on artificial turf. Even dancers, gymnasts and basketball players are at risk due to repeated flexing of the big toe on hard surfaces. In cricket, fast bowlers are prone to this injury. It causes stretching or tearing of the ligaments. Usually, it does not require any surgical intervention.
Protect the toe with the RICE method. You can also wear stiff-soled shoes or use athletic tape to immobilise the toe. Get back to sport gradually and slowly increase the duration of exercise over time. In rare cases, surgery might be recommended.
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