sports medicine Flashcards
Describe the difference between Direct and Indirect sports injuries.
A direct injury is an injury sustained at the site of external force e.g.) hit by a ball, bat, person. These are very common injuries in sport.
An indirect injury is an injury sustained from an internal force e.g.) pulled hamstring, sprained ankle. Internal forces are often generated by muscles, but includes forces transferred from the outside
classify the difference between Soft and Hard tissue injuries.
Injuries are classified as soft tissue injuries if they occur to soft tissue in the body.
→ Soft tissue includes all muscles, ligaments, tendons, skin, organs etc. Everything except bone and teeth.
Hard tissue injuries are injuries to the bone or teeth
→ this could be a broken or fractured bone, chipped tooth
What is an overuse injury?
Overuse injuries are caused by repetitive action, the distinct characteristic of an overuse injury is that it develops over time.
→ Overuse injuries include soft tissue injuries, such as tendonitis (e.g. tennis elbow) and hard tissue injuries, such as stress fractures.
Explain what is and the difference between tears, sprains and contusions.
A Strain is a tear that occurs in a muscle.
→ Strains (muscle tear) are normally caused by internal forces, poor technique or overtraining.
A sprain is a tear that occurs to a ligament (joining bone to bone around joints).
→ Sprains are often caused by an external force being transferred through the body often to the other side of a joint. They are always caused by a joint being bent in a direction it is not meant to move.
A contusion is when capillaries are ruptured causing internal bleeding. It is normally referred to as a bruise.
→ A bruise is normally caused by external force upon the soft tissue that results in the capillaries bursting.
Explain what is and the difference between Skin abrasions, Lacerations and blisters.
Abrasions may occur from landing on a hard, dry surface like when
making a tackle in football or coming off a bike.
They should be cleaned to remove embedded material.
Blisters are caused by a collection of fluid below the skin.
They may occur from friction with repeated use of equipment
or from new equipment.
Eg: runners get blisters on their heels, rowers on their hands.
A laceration is a wound where the flesh has incurred an irregular tear, eg: a head
clash or hitting an object. It should be cleaned and a sterile pad applied. Pressure
may need to be applied to stop bleeding. Lacerations over 1cm long need to be referred to a doctor to be stitched.
How to manage soft tissue injuries? (what is RICER)
Rest
Ice
Compression
Elevation
Referral
How to manage Hard tissue injuries?
- immobilisation
- assessment for medical attention.
Inflammatory response
Inflammation, Repair, and Remodeling are the three key phases of tissue recovery after injury. Here’s an overview of each:
- Inflammation Phase (0-7 days):
Goal: Protect and clear the injury site.
What Happens:
Blood vessels dilate, and immune cells (like neutrophils and macrophages) infiltrate the area.
They clear pathogens, damaged cells, and debris through phagocytosis.
Chemical signals like cytokines and growth factors (e.g., VEGF, TGF-β) are released to initiate repair.
Signs: Redness, swelling, heat, pain, and loss of function.
Repair Phase (4 days to 2 weeks):
Goal: Replace damaged tissue with new tissue.
What Happens:
Fibroblasts proliferate and secrete collagen to form a scaffold for new tissue (granulation tissue).
Endothelial cells grow new blood vessels (angiogenesis) to supply oxygen and nutrients.
Keratinocytes or other specialized cells begin to regenerate the tissue layer.
Outcome: Formation of early, fragile connective tissue.
Remodeling Phase (2 weeks to months):
Goal: Strengthen and restore tissue to its normal function.
What Happens:
Collagen is reorganized, cross-linked, and aligned along stress lines to increase tensile strength.
Excess capillaries and cells in the granulation tissue regress.
If repair is incomplete, scar tissue (composed mainly of type I collagen) may form.
Outcome: Functional recovery of tissue, though scars may lack some original features like sweat glands or elasticity.
Each phase is interconnected, ensuring effective recovery from injury and prevention of chronic inflammation or fibrosis.
what are fractures?
A fracture is a break or crack in a bone caused by trauma, overuse, or underlying conditions that weaken the bone.
what are dislocations?
A dislocation is an injury where a joint is forced out of its normal position, disrupting the alignment of the bones that form the joint.
how to assess both Soft and hard tissue injuries all together?
(TOTAPS)
Talk
Observe
Touch
Active movement
Passive movement
Skills test
How do medical conditions (Asthma, Diabetes, Epilepsy) impact children and young athletes?
Asthma: DEMANDS:
* Asthma makes breathing difficult
* It can be triggered by strenuous exercise, prolonged activity, cold dry air
Use lots of subs or interchange, smaller field, shorter playing time, keep
players from known triggers (play inside?), make sport less aerobic,
medication available and used properly.
* Swimming is a good activity due to moist air.
Diabetes:
Diabetics develop low blood sugar during strenuous, prolonged activity.
* May become weak, dizzy and even unconscious
Lots of breaks or interchange, duration of game?
* Quarters rather than halves, drinks, lollies available.
* Be aware of problem and management procedures.
Epilepsy:
Epileptics have seizures due to fatigue, extremes of temperature or over
stimulation.
Be aware of problem and treatment, safety considerations (swimming, etc)
* Some sports should not be considered i.e.; abseiling, rock climbing, skydiving, surfing
how do Overuse injuries impact Children and young athletes?
Injuries often related to growth
imbalances in muscles, tendons and
bones
* Growth plates injured
* Bones grow faster than muscles and
tendons causing painful inflammation
* Possible fractures due to lack of
coordination through fatigue
Ensure appropriate conditioning and
stretching
* Duration of training, correct gear, rule
changes i.e.; big gears not allowed on kids
bikes in races.
* Avoid overusing a body part – vary sports,
positions
* Rules to restrict repetition, eg: cricket and
baseball limit number of overs/balls pitched
* Use appropriate equipment (modified)
what is thermoregulation and how does it impact children and young athletes?
The definition of thermoregulation is the ability of the body to maintain its constant temperature.
Children have larger surface area → more opportunity to lose fluids.
* Children sweat less and could be become overheated.
* Less muscle, ↓ heat generation, ↑ risk of becoming cold.
Reduce length of bouts of activity
* Avoid extremes of weather
* Encourage frequent replacement of fluids
* Wear appropriate clothing
how can resistance training implicate children and young athletes?
Can pre-adolescent children
improve strength through
resistance training?
* Is growth stunted?
* Will it cause injury?
Resistance training can improve strength mainly through improved neural
capacity and coordination
* Training should begin with body weight exercises, instruct the proper technique,
allow appropriate rest, not load excessively, have slow accurate movements with
relatively light loads, work large muscle groups, not be competitive
* Ensure appropriate warm-up
* Performed only under close supervision
how do heart conditions impact Adults and aged athletes?
Description:
* cv system less efficient, ↓ ability to carry o2
* problems – weaker heart, narrowed & less elastic blood vessels, high BP,
less elastic lungs →breathing more difficult
* becomes fatigued more easily, takes longer to recover
* requires medical clearance before starting exercise program; pre-screening
stress test
Explain the sports participation options available for aged
people with heart conditions.
* should avoid strenuous exercise (work at 60-75% MHR)
* exercise will ↓ BP
* aerobic exercise best – walking, jogging, cycling, swimming
– must begin slowly, progress gradually
* 30 mins/day, 3x week ideal – steady state HR safe but
should be 10bpm ↓ than what triggers symptom
* program should be individual & sustainable
describe the impact of fractures and bone density on aged or adult athletes.
Description:
* stress fractures common in athletes with ↓ calcium, esp. ♀ who are
amenorrhoeic or have ↓ estrogen levels
* inactivity encourages calcium discharge from bones making them weaker
* diet may be lacking in calcium
Explain the sports participation options available
for aged people with fractures/bone density
conditions.
* aim - ↓ risk of falls & subsequent fractures
* sport/exercise programs need to be safe,
beneficial and not cause pain
* should focus on ↑ components such as
balance, strength, coordination, flexibility
* activities should include endurance and low
impact and balance activities eg: aerobics,
aquarobics
* should avoid high loads, high impact
activities, contact sports or sudden direction
changes
describe the impact of flexibility and joint mobility on adult or aged athletes.
Description:
* flexibility ↓ with age – loss of
elasticity in tendons and muscles
* arthritis, aching joints, tight
muscles all respond positively to
exercise programs that focus on
safe stretching and improving ROM
in joints
* programs should ↑ flexibility,
balance and stability(strength)
Explain the sports participation options
available for aged people with
flexibility/joint mobility conditions.
* programs need to keep joints supple
to maintain a wide ROM → efficient
and effective performance of tasks
* requires regular, gentle, slow
stretching
* swimming ideal for maintenance of
joint mobility
* other options – walking, cycling,
yoga, tai-chi, aquarobics, gentle
pilates
how do eating disorders impact female athletes?
Characteristics related to weight
control, food intake, physical
activity
* Incidence of disorders ↑
* Extreme exercise often a symptom
of an eating disorder – exercises to
burn fat
* Disordered eating→ starvation→
dehydration→ impaired
performance
* Characterised by behaviour such as
purging, binge eating, starving
Sports options/management
* Must recognise and attend to
immediately
* Be aware of signs/symptoms
* Multidisciplinary approach to treatment
* Anorexia common in elite athletes in
‘appearance’ sports, eg: gymnastics,
diving, ice skating and also in endurance
sports. Reduce focus on winning and
need for appearance.
