Sports Injury Clinic Markham

Whether you play sports recereationally or professionally, injuries will happen. How you manage them can impact how long you're away from doing what you love to do.

Do I need to have my sports injury assessed?

Most injuries can be managed safely on your own. But there are some indications that you may need to have your sports injury assessed.

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When should you get checked

If you''ve been trying to manage your sports injury and you've noticed:

You can't put weight on it

An old injury starts to swell or hurt

Pain or swelling that's lasting more than a week

Tingling or burning in the area

Discolouration or bruising

Your pain increases with resuming your sport or activity

If you haven't noticed the above problems, then you probably don't require immediate assessment. The common advice provided for years for an acute injury has been abbreviated to RICE:

Resting your sports injury

Different injuries will require different degrees of rest. Severe injuries may require a brace or crutches. Milder injuries may require only avoiding the aggravating movements.

Ice

Although called into question for routine treatment of all injuries, in the first 48 hours ice can be the treatment of choice especially if there is a significant amount of heat and swelling in the injured area. Ice has a pain numbing effect and will reduce swelling in the area to reduce the pain in the injured area. Care should be taken when using ice on areas with poor blood flow as this can result in a delayed healing response. Maximum cooling is generally achieved within 15-20 minutes of application. Icing can be repeated as symptoms dictate.

Compression

Putting a compression bandage such as a Tensor or using a compression type brace can help to support the injured area and to reduce swelling. Your physiotherapist can help you choose the one that’s most appropriate for you and your injury.

Elevation

Elevating the acute injury assists with reducing swelling. Keeping the injured area above the level of your heart when possible helps to prevent swelling from accumulating in the area This helps to reduce swelling and pain. The combination of Rest, Ice , Compression and Elevation are often abbreviated to RICE.

Managing your Sports Injury

The initial treatment for a sports injury is to stop the activity. Never try to play through the pain of a sports injury. Continuing to exercise with pain can cause further damage resulting in a longer recovery time.

RICE or MEAT

RICE is the most common advice given for an acute injury. The belief was that inflammation and pain need to be reduced to allow for a better outcome. This guideline has been called into question with recent evidence showing the benefit of early movement, exercise as tolerated, analgesics to treat pain and treatment focused on improving blood flow to the injured tissues and restoring early movement. This combination of Movement, Exercise, Analgesics and Treatment is abbreviated to MEAT. Research shows a faster improvement with symptoms and earlier return to play with the MEAT protocol for ankle sprains.

Prehab before your injury happens

Lack of flexibility, muscle imbalances and movement restrictions can be reasons why your acute injury happened. They can also contribute to the persistent chronic injuries. Once an injury has occurred, return to play is determined in large part by the ability of the injured tissue to heal and for pain levels to reduce. It’s easier to address underlying factors before starting a new activity or sport. Simple rehabilitative exercises and stretches can often resolve underlying problems before the injury starts so that you don't miss time away from your sport.

MEET OUR SPORTS INJURY TEAM