Protective Equipment in Sports Medicine Flashcards
What materials are commonly found in protective equipment?
- Neoprene
- Closed- or open-cell foam
- Plastic
- Metal
- Casting material or any combination of these
What is NOCSAE?
- National Operating Committee on Standards for Athletic Equipment
With Protective Equipment, what voids the liability to the manufacturer?
- Modifications to that equipment
- Can include painting it or removing and cutting pads
- If a sports PT modifies a piece of equipment and it results in injury to the athlete, the clinician can be found liable.
What should be done to allow a player wearing a cast to play in a football game?
- Padding must be applied to protect other players from
harm when coming into contact with the cast.
What is the difference between stock and custom protective equipment?
- Stock items are prefabricated and come ready to use
- Custom items are constructed specifically for an individual athlete to protect a body part
When would you use resilient or non-resilient protective equipment?
- Resiliency is the ability to regain shape quickly after impact
- Highly resilient materials are used when protection
from repeated impacts is required. - Non-resilient materials can be used when one-time or occasional impact is expected, although the protective equipment may be ruined by that impact.
Give example of non-resilient material used in protective equipment
- Polystyrene in a bicycle helmet
- After impact, is likely ruined and helmet should be replaced
What are the two main types of foam?
- Open Cell
- Closed Cell
Describe Open Cell Foams and Uses
- Low-density materials; cells are connected to allow air passage from cell to cell
- Have the capacity to absorb fluids and are commonly used to pad bony prominences or hard edges of protective equipment and custom-fabricated pads
- Generally do not have good shock-absorbing
qualities because they deform quickly under stress.
Describe Closed Cell Foams and Uses
- Preferred because of its superior shock-absorbing abilities, and its resilience to absorption of fluid such as perspiration
- Should also rebound quickly after being compressed to maintain protection
What is Dual Density Foam?
- Consists of high- and low-density foam that has been glued together by the manufacturer. This can be useful when creating a pad quickly on the field
What are Air Management Pads?
- Constructed of various open- and closed-cell foam pads encased in polyurethane or a nylon material.
- This encasement is airtight, which prevents quick deformation of the foam so that the energy is dissipated over a broad area
- Frequently used in Football Shoulder pads
Primary use of Gel Protective Material?
- Absorb Shock
- Can be cut into different shapes and conform to areas of the body (AC Joint, Horseshoe after ankle sprain)
What is Sorbothane?
- Gel Padding
- Self-adhesive viscoelastic polymer padding that dissipates and absorbs impact forces. This material is available in sheets or in prefabricated pads that can be placed in ball gloves, shoes, or splints
Describe the uses of felt in protective equipment
- Durable, maintains shape well
- Used in Arch supports and horseshoes frequently
- Used to reduce friction in high pressure areas like the heels
What are uses of thermomoldable plastics
- Gives Rigid Support
- Relieve impact at an area when used in conjunction with a softer, more shock-absorbing material such as foam.
What are the two categories of thermo-moldable plastics
- Plastics
- Rubber
Describe plastic category of thermo-moldable plastics
- More conforming than the rubber-type materials.
- Therefore, plastic is more appropriate for small splints, such as on the hand
- Include materials such as Aquaplast, Bluestripe, Orfit, Multiform I and II, and Orthoplast II
What are some rubberlike thermo-moldable plastics
- Ultraform Traditions, Orthoplast, Aquaplast Greenstripe, and Synergy
What are working temperatures of most thermo-moldable plastics?
- 150 degrees to 180 degrees F
- 65.5 degrees to 82.2 degrees C
What are High Temperature thermo-moldable plastics?
- Become malleable at temperatures of 325 degrees F to 350 degrees F (163 degrees C to 177 degrees C)
- Shaped over Plaster molds
- Used in face masks in basketball (W-Clear)
What is the most widely used thermo-moldable plastic?
- Orthoplast
What is Plastazote?
- Heat-activated, lightweight, closed-cell foam that is heated for five to ten minutes in a convection oven at 285 degrees F (140 degrees C)
- Made from Polyethylene and can be formed to the part to be protected and provides lightweight padding and support
- Useful in protecting a quadriceps contusion to prevent repeated blows and MO/ HO
What is Scotchcast Fiberglass-Polyurethane?
- Used in casts
- One-step, easily moldable splint that sets in three to four minutes.
- Functional strength in the material is attained in twenty minutes.
What is Scotchwrap?
- Has 25 percent of fiberglass resin of Scotchcass so less rigid when dry
- Could be an alternative to RTV 11 rubber in high school athletes, because it is easier to apply
- Referee may require the material to be covered with soft padding to avoid injury to other players
What is Hexcelite or X-Lite?
- Low-temperature thermoplastic with an open-weave design that allows fabrication of lightweight, highly ventilated splints
- Moldable with warm tap water and is self-bonding, so multiple layers can be used to increase the rigidity of the device.
What is Silicone Elastomer?
- Popular in Fabricating soft splints
- Used when a more rigid material is considered illegal in sporting competition
- Liquid-style elastomer is reinforced with layers of gauze bandaging
- Set-up time is controlled by a separate catalyst that is added to the silicone
What is Orthoglass?
- Fiberglass-type resin that, when combined with tap water, becomes rigid.
- Useful if water is only material available (Sideline)
What is the most recent innovation in football technology?
- The Revolution helmet by Riddell
- Twenty percent reduction of concussion
Describe Helmet Fitting
• Wet the hair or wear the way it will be during season.
• Should fit snugly around all parts of the player’s head. No gaps.
• It shouldCover the base of the skull.
• It should not come down over the eyes, Sit
approximately 3/4 inch (1.9 cm) or two finger widths above the eyes.
• Ear holes should line up with the external ear canals.
• Should not shift when manual pressure is applied.
• The chin strap should be properly aligned and keep the helmet from moving up and down or side to side.
• Cheek pads should fit snugly against sides of face.
• The face mask should allow a full field of vision and be approximately three finger widths from the nose.
• The face mask should not move with external force; if it moves, helmet is fitted too loosely.
• To inflate bladder, the bulb is held with an arch in the hose and bulb. To deflate, bulb is in a straight position.
Describe Hockey Helmet
- In addition to being able to protect the head during falls and body checks (high mass, low velocity), the helmet must absorb and protect the head from low-mass, high-velocity impact forces, such as being hit with a stick or a puck.
Describe Face Masks in NCAA Hockey
- Required to wear face protection. Helmets must be equipped with wire face masks.
- The openings in the wire guard must be small enough so that a hockey stick cannot fit through the holes and cause injury.
What is the difference between a soft cup and hard cup chin strap?
- The hard cup gives the athlete added padding on
the chin, whereas the soft cup primarily functions to
hold the helmet in place.
In what sports are eye injuries most common?
- Baseball
- Basketball
- Squash
- Women’s lacrosse (1.76 x higher than mens)
What type of material should glassess be made out of for eye protection?
- Polycarbonate or CR 39
When is someone considered a “one-eye” athlete?
- When corrected vision is 20/200 or less in one eye.
- Should protect good eye during sport and consider not playing collision or contact sports
What is primary role of the mouth guard in sport?
- Prevent Dental Trauma
- Reduce shock from blows to chin
- Likely does not reduce concussion risk
What are the two types of Football Shoulder Pads
- Cantilevered
- Non- Cantilevered
When would you use Cantilever Football Pads
- Players performing primarily tackling and blocking
- Cantilever pads are so named because of the hard plastic bridge they make over the superior aspect of the shoulder to protect the AC Joint
What are the three types of Cantilever Pads?
- Inside, outside, and double cantilever
Discuss Inside, Outside, and Double Cantilever Football Shoulder Pads
- Inside cantilever - fits under the arch of the shoulder pads and rests against the shoulder. It is more common because it is less bulky than the outside cantilever.
- Outside cantilever - sits on top of the pad, outside of the arch. It provides a larger blocking surface and affords more protection to those who are in constant contact, such as linemen.
- Double cantilever - combination
of both the inside and the outside cantilever,
affords a player the greatest amount of protection but
is not feasible for all positions because of its bulk.
When would you use Non-Cantilever pads?
- Players like quarterbacks and receivers
- More Freedom of Movement
- Becoming more popular in Offensive linemen who use their hands to block
What determines what style of shoulder pad is used in Football?
- Position
- Anterior and posterior padding extends lower to protect the sternum and ribs of linemen, linebackers and fullbacks
- Defensive ends require the greater protection of larger cups and flaps for tackling.
- Offensive backs and receivers require smaller shoulder cups and flaps to allow them greater mobility when passing and catching.
What is a common piece of protective equipment for shoulder instability?
- Sully Stabilizer
Where should thigh pads be placed?
- Centered over the quadriceps muscle group approximately six to seven inches (fifteen to seventeen centimeters) above the kneecap
- When using asymmetrical thigh pads, the larger flare should be placed on the lateral aspect of the thigh to avoid injury to the genitalia.
Describe Prophylactic, Functional, and Rehabilitative braces
- Prophylactic - Used to reduce the incidence or severity of injury to uninjured normal anatomy or to a fully rehabilitated injury
- Functional - provides protection against reinjury following rehabilitation or surgical reconstruction of an injured knee
- Rehabilitative - Provides protection of healing structures by limiting mobility following injury or surgery.
- Prophylactic knee braces should not be required equipment.
What type of brace should you use to provide stability in the ACL-deficient or reconstructed knee.
- Lenox-Hill Type Derotation brace
Does bracing decrease anterior translation of the tibia in an ACL Deficient Knee?
- Yes, while participating in Weight Bearing and NWB activities
- No, in the transition from WB to NWB or vice versa
For what group of individuals, is there the most evidence for the use of knee braces in ACL Reconstructed Knees
- Skiers
Can bracing for ankles help prevent injury?
- Yes, and semi rigid braces seem to be more effective than lace up
