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Prevent &
Manage Injuries
Injury Classification
Mechanism/Cause of injury
Types of tissue injuries
Management of
Acute Injuries
Treatment
aims
R.I.C.E.R. method
Sports Strapping
Manage
& prevent injuires
Principles of taping
Taping techniques
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Injury
Classification
Injuries can
be classified by:
• Mechanism or cause of injury
• Type of tissue injured
Types of tissue injuries
• Soft
tissues - Muscles,
tendons ligaments
• Hard
tissue - Bone or joint
Soft
tissues
Muscles
Damage to muscles can be direct or indirect.
When the demand on the muscle is greater than the strength of
the structure then a tear can occur.
These injuries are graded according to the amount of damage
done.
1. 1st degree
= Strain. A small number of muscle fibres are damaged.
2. 2nd degree
= Partial rupture. Up to 50% of the muscle is damaged.
3. 3rd degree
= Complete rupture. The muscle is completely torn.
Direct trauma to the muscle usually results in a Contusion I
Haematoma. This usually produces a lot of bleeding within the
muscle e.g. Cork thigh.
Tendon injury
As with the muscle injury tendon injury has been classified
into three grades:
1. Primary. There is inflammation
and swelling in the tendon = Tendinitis.
2. Secondary. There may be a partial
tear of the tendon causing pain and weakness.
3. Tertiary. There is complete
rupture of the tendon. There may be little pain but complete
loss of function, eg Ruptured Achilles tendon.
Ligaments
Ligaments are usually damaged by significant external force,
eg a tackle in rugby or a netball player standing on another
player's foot and rolling their ankle.
The function of the ligament is to stabilise the joint.
Again there are three grades of damage
1. 1st degree = Strain. A small
number of ligament fibres are damaged.
There is usually some swelling and pain on stretch.
2. 2nd degree = Partial tear.
Up to 50% of the ligament is damaged.
There is greater pain and swelling.
3. 3rd degree = Complete rupture.
The entire ligament is torn. There may be less pain but significant
swelling and loss of function.
Hard Tissues
• Dislocation
is a common sporting injuries and should be treated like a Grade
3 Ligament injury.
• Fractures
are also common but if you suspect a fracture get immediate
medical attention. |
