Causes of Sporting Injury

Injuries can be caused in many ways and occur for a variety of reasons. The two main categories of injuries are: Traumatic injuries and over-use injuries.

Traumatic injuries

These injuries occur suddenly and you can usually feel that something has gone wrong. There may be immediate signs of injury such as swelling, pain and bruising. The injury may be caused by external factors, such as a collision with another person, or by internal factors, such as a pulled muscle. Internal factors are not related to another person and may not have an obvious cause.

External causes

Depending on the nature of the activity there could he a variety of external causes of injury. Impact injuries occur as a result of a collision with another person or a piece of equipment. These are more likely to occur in sports than in outdoor activities, dance or swimming. All contact sports, such as rugby and football, involve impacts between players. This means that players have a greater chance of being injured in this way. In a sport such as boxing the main aim is to hurt your opponent, so the risk of an injury is very high. In these activities it is essential that players are physically fit enough for the competition. The contest should be between similar groups. For example a schoolboy rugby team should not be expected to play against a good adult club side, because the differences in physical size would make injuries to the schoolboys very likely.

Collisions with equipment may also result in injuries. This may happen when a player runs into a goal post, is hit by a hockey stick or injured by a football boot. Gymnasts may collide with equipment if they miss-time the execution of a move. Bruising and cuts are the most likely result of an impact, but more serious injuries such as dislocations, fractures and concussion may occur.

Playing surfaces may cause injuries when a player falls on or slides across the surface. This can result in cuts and grazes from tarmac surfaces or friction burns from an artificial surface such as Astroturf. When playing on uneven surfaces such as a rough patch of grass, a player may twist an ankle by landing awkwardly. On some surfaces, such as Astroturf, ankle injuries occur when someone tries to stop suddenly and there is no slip in the surface. This means that the player’s foot does not slide, even slightly. Sometimes just a little amount of slide helps the player not to go over on an ankle.

Equipment – minor injuries may occur as a result of using a piece of equipment even though it is not faulty. Blisters are common, particularly when you are using new shoes or a new racket, for example. Even if the equipment is not new, if it is used for a prolonged length of time an injury might occur.

Accidents – the main aim of any safety precautions is to reduce the likelihood of accidents. However, no matter how many precautions you take, accidents will still happen. Some activities carry higher risks of injury than others. In dancing or ice skating, there is always the risk of slipping or of one performer dropping the other. The person doing the lift needs to be strong enough to hold the other person. Such accidents may be rare, but preparation is still an important part of minimizing the risk.

Some activities tend to be more risky than others. Outdoor activities such as rock-climbing, canoeing and skiing have an element of risk involved, which is why they appeal to many people. They like the challenge of the activity and get a great deal of satisfaction from overcoming the elements. However, participants have to be aware of the risks and make a decision as to whether they wish to take the chance of having an accident. The more risks they take, the more serious the injury is likely to be if something goes wrong.

Internal causes

An injury may occur without prior warning during any physical activity, and it may be difficult to know what caused it. The most common type of injury is a sprain or strain. The injury may be due to over-stretching or twisting in an awkward way. A lot of back injuries occur when people try to lift an object the wrong way. Fatigue, illness, stiffness and pain are all warning signs that must be heeded. The chance of internal injuries occurring is greater when you are feeling like this.

Over-use injuries

These injuries build up gradually over time, and that may make them harder to diagnose. They are often a result of doing a certain activity or action over and over again. Some of these injuries could be avoided by structuring training programmes, competition schedules or activity sessions appropriately and by taking adequate rest between sessions. There are several common overuse injuries.

Tennis elbow is a common injury among tennis players but can occur as a result of other sports or even from everyday activities. It is a strain of a tendon on the outer side of the elbow and is usually due to over-working or straining the muscles of the forearm.

Golfer’s elbow is a similar type of injury to tennis elbow but affects the tendon on the inside of the elbow.

Shin splints is a general term to describe pain in the front and side of the lower leg. It is often associated with running or walking long distances. Correct footwear may help avoid this injury.

Stress fractures occur as a result of an increase in the workload on a certain bone. Runners may suffer stress fractures in the leg if they do too much running or wear incorrect footwear. Stress fractures may also be caused by muscle or tendon injuries that pull at the bone and cause a fracture to occur.

It is important that any of these injuries is treated early, to prevent more serious damage. Continuing to do an activity when you know you have an injury will make the situation worse and may put you out of action for longer than necessary.

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