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Robbie Fowler, Ledley King, Fernando Torres, Owen Hargreaves, Jamie Redknapp and Marco Van Basten have all had their dreams crashed by severe career-ending injuries.These injuries were sudden, unexpected and in a specific area of the body that ended the player's career. According to reports published between 2004 to 2009 by The National Collegiate Athletic Association, USA, there were more than 41,000 injuries and more than 25 million athletes lost their chance to play in major sports events because of it.
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.A career-ending injury does not necessarily mean a physical injury.It is often seen that players forfeit their careers due to mental illnesses too. A player might be able to recover physicallybut loses his mental well-being. Being out of the game for a long time can stress out a player. They have to deal with the stress of acceptance, fans' expectations and even loss of money because they are not paid during their recovery period. Because of these reasons,they often try to come back to their sport before they are fully fitand this destroys theirfuture career.
This can cause depression, anxiety issues and panic attacks. In order to tackle this, many major sporting clubs have now started compulsory rehabilitation programmes for their players and only allow them to play if they have the medical clearance to be back on the field.
So, what are these career ending injuries?
Anterior cruciate ligament injury or ACL injury is the most common career-ending injury. This type of injury is of two types. It can be a tear in the anterior cruciate ligament, which is situated inside the knee or a sprain. Proper first aid is very important to prevent future complications. A sprain is comparatively easier to recover from. But a tear may call for the need of a surgical intervention. After the surgery, the knee swells up. It may even feel like it's about to drop off and it becomes too weak to carry any weight. The pain is excruciating and almost impossible to bear.
This injury is often seen in football and soccer, as these sports require the body to make uneven turns. Doctors recommend at least a year off from any physical activity along with a high protein diet. While recovering from ACL, it is important that you eat lots of fibre-rich food like nuts, beans and legumes.
Another common career-ending injury is the navicular stress fracture. The navicular is one of the bones in the midfoot. Putting too much stress on it while playing weakens it and this may eventually lead to a fracture. It is best to handle it before it gets very weak.But, sometimes, mostly in basketball, the navicular swelling is overlooked as normal swelling and this causes a fracture during the game. The pain is unbearable and renders the athlete unable to play for at least a year.
If you suffer from this injury, you must eat lots of protein and increase your calcium intake.Go for regular tests as fracture can often lead to a bacterial infection. This kind of injury may also be genetic and it is commonly seen in kids too.
Spinal cord injury connects with many departments. Injury to any disks of the spinal column or vertebrae or the spinal cord itself can lead to an early ticket home. The body becomes extremely weak and render the person incapable of carrying any load.Even body weight becomes unbearable. Surgery is the only treatment option and bed rest is the only form of recovery.
Eat vegetables like spinach, kale, cabbage, fresh fruits, whole grains, nuts and seeds every day. Avoid salty chips and don't add extra salt to your food.
Shin splints or tibial stress syndrome is the inflammation of the shin bone. Shinbone is a connective tissue that attaches muscles to the bones. Constant and repetitive pressure on the shin bone proves to be the major factor for shin splints. Millions of sportspeople have to take early retirement because they can no longer bear the pain. Even the greatest athlete of all time,Micheal Jordan, suffered from shin splits towards the end of his career. This can cause flat feet, weak ankles and hip pain.
You don't need surgery for tthis. The only treatment option is rest and anti-inflammatory painkillers.
Often seen in elders, degenerative knee is seen when the cartilage in the knee joint gradually wears off. Extensive and repetitive pressure on the knee leads to this. Rookie of the Year, Brandon Roy, had to recently end his career because of this. Degenerative knee makes it hard to even do basic work like walking or climbing stairs.
The treatment is surgery.But even after that, the pain is unbearable. You will have to take painkillers for the rest of your life, or the pain can come back.
Ankles are the highest used part of the body in sports. It takes the weight of the entire body. If an ankle breaks, it usually takes 3-4 months to recover.But if the ankle breaks 2-3 times, the player is forced to retire. This kind of injury is never specific and can always affect new parts of the ankle such as bone, muscles or a tendon. The treatment for muscle and bone is physiotherapy and rest, but if the tendon is injured, you will need surgery.