Types of Sports Injuries

There are minor and more serious types of sports injuries you can sustain:

A. Minor injuries

1. Sprains and strains. A sprain is where one or more of your ligaments is stretched, twisted or torn (sometimes referred to as “pulling a muscle.”). Sprains often occur in the ligaments around the joints of the ankle or knee. The joint is not dislocated or fractured. The most common places for a sprain to occur are the knee, the ankle, the wrist and the thumb. Common muscle strain symptoms are pain, muscle spasm, and/or a loss of strength in the muscle.

Strains commonly occur in many sports, particularly those that involve running, jumping or rapid changes of direction, such as football.
The most common types of strains are hamstring strains, calf strains, quadriceps strains, and lumbar strains.

2. Cuts. Cuts are usually minor injuries which heal quickly on their own and do not need treatment. Treatment for a cut is usually only required if the cut is deep or has damaged body parts beneath the skin, such as nerves, blood vessels or tendons.

3. Bruises. Bruises are bluish or purple-colored patches that appear on the skin when tiny blood vessels, called capillaries, break or burst underneath it.Bruises can be very painful at first, but they are not usually a serious threat to your health.

4. Blisters. Blisters are small, fluid-filled swellings that form in the upper layers of skin. Fluid collects under the damaged layer of skin, cushioning the tissue underneath and protecting it from further damage.Blisters are a common type of minor injury caused by friction on soft skin. They're common in long-distance runners and rowers.

5. Minor head injuries. A minor head injury often causes a bump or bruise on the head. You may also experience nausea, mild headache, tenderness or mild swelling of the scalp,and mild dizziness.

Mild knocks to the head don’t usually need to be treated. However, go to your nearest emergency facility if you have a concussion. Symptoms of a concussion can include:

brief loss of consciousness
memory loss
vision disturbances, such as "seeing stars"
confusion

6. Heel pain. Heel pain can happen when the thick band of tissue that runs under the sole of the foot becomes damaged, medically known asplantar fasciitis. It can cause a sharp and often severe pain when you place weight on your heel. Heel pain is common in runners and joggers.

7. Tennis elbow.Tennis elbow is a painful condition that affects the outside of the elbow. It is caused by strenuous overuse of the muscles and tendons of the forearm and around the elbow joint.The symptoms of tennis elbow include:

swelling around the outer edge of the elbow (due to the tendon being inflamed)
tenderness around the elbow
pain when moving the elbow

8. Golfer’s elbow.Golfer’s elbow has similar symptoms to tennis elbow. However, due to the difference in arm movement in golf, the swelling occurs on the inside of the elbow rather than on the outside.

9. Tendonitis.Tendonitis is inflammation of a tendon. Tendonitis is a fairly common injury that can be caused by a strain or tear in tendons around the shoulder, elbow, wrist, finger, thigh, knee, and back of the heel.

Symptoms of tendonitis include:

swelling, redness and pain in the injured area
restricted movement of the affected area
sometimes a change in appearance of the affected area, such as a lump or a visible change in the position of a limb

10. Shin Splints. Also known as sore shins, cause pain along the shin bone. The shin bone runs down the front of the lower leg between your knee and ankle.Sore shins are caused by swelling and tiny fractures in the surface of the bone, usually from any sport that involves running, or running without enough foot support. The main symptoms of sore shins are aching, throbbing or tenderness along the inside of the shin, which sometimes travels to the outside of the shin.

11. Knee pain (runner’s knee). Runner’s knee is one of the most common types of knee injury. It develops when the cartilage underneath the kneecap softens or wears away, causing swelling at the back of the kneecap, usually from repeated impact of running on hard surfaces. Symptoms include soreness and discomfort beneath or to one side of your kneecap and/or a grating sensation in your knee.

12. Stress fractures. Stress fractures are tiny cracks that develop in a bone as a result of repeated stresses and strains. The two most common symptoms of a stress fracture are pain and swelling in the affected body part. Most stress fractures will heal on their, as long as you rest the affected body part.

13. Bursitis. Bursitis is inflammation of a bursa, which is a small fluid-filled sac underneath the skin, usually found over the joints and between tendons and bones, commonly occurring in the shoulder, elbow, ankle, knee, hip and thigh.

Symptoms of bursitis include:

pain – often a dull ache in the affected body part that is made worse by movement or pressure
tenderness in the affected body part
swelling of the affected body part
loss of movement in the affected body part

14. Cartilage damage. The knee joint is the most common location for cartilage damage to occur. In some cases of knee joint damage, bleeding can occur inside the knee joint.

The symptoms of articular cartilage damage include:

swelling
joint pain
stiffness
a decreased range of movement in the affected joint

B: More serious injuries

1. Broken bones. Symptoms of a broken bone include:

pain and swelling
bruising or discolored skin around the bone or joint
the limb or affected part of the body being bent at an unusual angle
inability to move or put weight on the injured limb or body part
The pain that is associated with a broken bone can often be severe and can make you feel faint, dizzy and sick.

2. Severe head injuries. A severe head injury can cause a wide range of symptoms such as:

unconsciousness, either very briefly or for a longer period of time
difficulty staying awake or still being sleepy several hours after the injury
a seizure or fit, when your body suddenly moves uncontrollably
difficulty speaking, such as slurred speech
vision problems or double vision
difficulty understanding what people say

Ligament damage. The most common type of ligament damage is a torn anterior cruciate ligament (ACL). The ACL is one of four ligaments in your knee. It can be torn if you suddenly stop or change direction, or if you land incorrectly from a jump. If you tear your ACL, you may hear a pop or crack at the time of your injury.

An ACL tear is a fairly common sports injury, and around 20% of all sports-related knee injuries involve the ACL.

The symptoms of a torn ACL include:

severe pain in your knee
instability in your knee, which means you cannot put much weight on it
swelling in your knee
not having the full range of movement in your knee and, in particular, not being able to straighten your leg

How to reduce the risk of a sports injury:

Have an annual physical before you participate in sports
Engage in proper conditioning before you participate in athletics
Make sure you are getting proper nutrition
Warm up and cool down to allow your body to adjust

Texas

Types of Sports Injuries

B: More serious injuries

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