I
frequently see cases of overuse injuries in my clinic. And the question I get
most often is “What is an overuse injury and why did I get one?”
To answer
that question, we need to consider the causes of an overuse injury. Overuse
injuries are those that happen due to a repeated action rather than an acute
injury which happens instantly, like an ankle sprain. But it is not just the
sustained action that causes injury, it is the body's inability to respond to
the loading of the tendon or muscle. This is often due to faulty technique,
muscle imbalances, inflexibility and incorrect equipment, which may prevent
tissue adaptation. When combined with excessive overload, or use, may cause
microscopic injury and lead to inflammation.
Overuse injuries can present themselves in stages.
In the first stage, you may notice discomfort warming up that disappears. The
second stage is as before, but then reappears after completion of activity. The
third stage the discomfort begins to worsen during activity. And the final
stage results in pain and discomfort all the time. Some of the signs that you
may have incurred an overuse injury is persistent swelling, heat, redness and
impaired function.
There are a variety of overuse injuries that effect
all levels of athletes, but some of the more common are: Achilles tendinopathy,
tennis elbow, ITB syndrome, shin splints, plantar fasciitis, stress fractures
and patellofemoral pain syndrome. This list could go on, but these are some of
the most frequent cases that I have treated.
The next question I get from clients is “How can I
prevent overuse injuries”? Well, if they’ve come into the clinic with an injury
we’re past the point of initial prevention and into the realm of rehabilitation.
However, at my clinic, a thorough prevention plan will be explained after
rehabilitation, so hopefully I won’t see them again for the same injury!
There are
many ways to prevent overuse injuries, all of which involve discipline and
consistency. These include:
Thorough
warm up and cool down, including dynamic stretching techniques.
Proper
equipment – proper running shoes, appropriate sized tennis racquet.
Increase
activity slowly - do not increase your activity at more 10% per week.
Practice
using appropriate technique, this may mean utilising the services of a personal
trainer to get started.
Condition
your strength and flexibility, yoga and pilates are very good to help you with
this.
Listen to
your body! If you have pain, it’s best to seek professional advice and not ignore it. With
professional advice identify the cause of pain and start rehabilitation. DO not
be an internet physio!!
This is a very brief overview of overuse injuries.
If you feel you may be suffering from an overuse injury it’s best to contact a
professional such as a sports therapist, physiotherapist or osteopath who has a
background in sports injuries.
If you have any questions about the information
contained in this post or would like more information about sports therapy,
please do not hesitate to contact me.
Sara Green, Sports Therapist, BSc (Hons)
sara@prestigesportinjury.co.uk
