Football is an extremely popular sport within the United States. This is quite different from soccer (also referred to as football), but it both requires players to pass around some kind of ball. American football is the most common sport played by American kids, but also the roughest kind of sport. It is a combination of rugby and soccer. It is also the most highly watched sport on network television.
All kinds of sports have a risk for injury, some are higher than others, especially for sports that involve physical contact, like American football. Unfortunately, football leads all other sports in the number of injuries sustained. According to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, in 2007, more than 900,000 athletes under 18 years old were treated in the hospital and private medical clinics for football related injuries. Listed below are some of the most common injuries football players acquire:
Knee Injuries — apparently this is the most common, especially to the anterior and posterior cruciate ligament (ACL/PCL). Ligaments are fibrous tissue that connect bones. The ACL and PCL are responsible for holding your knee joint together and provides stability. Suddenly slowing down and changing direction, a sudden pivot, or a sudden stop can injure your ACL. The ACL can also be torn when a direct force is applied to the knee. PCL injuries are often caused by a direct force on the knee while it is bent. Patients complain of a feeling of looseness and instability when their ligaments are torn. The menisci, also part of the knee, is responsible for weight dispersion and reducing friction. This is commonly injured along with the ACL. When another ligament of the knee, the medial collateral ligament (MCL), is injured along with the ACL and meniscus, it is called the unhappy triad of the knee. It is one of the most severe injuries an athlete can have and will affect his prognosis and ability to return to sport.
Shoulder Injuries — fracture of the acromioclavicular joint (ACJ) is a common occurrence. This joint is found at the top of your shoulder. In addition to connecting your shoulder to your trunk, this joint provides us the ability to raise our arms above the head, such as when throwing a ball. The football athlete is also susceptible to shoulder dislocations, labral tears, and rotator cuff strains due to large forces during a tackle. Although these injuries are easily corrected, an athlete may feel a significant difference in his shoulder movements during a game.
Concussion — a concussion is mild form of traumatic brain injury. It causes dizziness, vomiting and blurry vision. Sometimes the affected athlete can blackout. It can be due to direct contact to the head or whiplash injury. A whiplash is an injury to the neck after a sudden movement of the head forwards, backwards or sideways. In a whiplash injury, the brain will also move within the skull and that can cause a concussion.
Overuse Injuries — this type of injury indicates that an athlete is pushing his body to more than the limit it can take. The most common sign of overuse is lower back pain. Other signs include knee or shoulder pain without any traumatic injury. Overuse injuries also indicate improper form training. With overuse injuries, the athlete will need to be reeducated in proper technique while still continuing to strengthen his muscles.
Technological advancements and modifications are constantly being developed to help lower the risk of injuries. Playing rules are also updated and changed to increase the safety of the players.
Working with a Physical Therapist is the best road to recovery of an injured athlete (in any sport). Here is what they usually go through in sports physical therapy:
Assessment — this will depend on the type of injury, how it was acquired, and if the patient underwent surgery or not. The therapist will surely check your strength (using manual muscle testing) and flexibility (they use a goniometer which is kind of a ruler). If you injured your knees or any part of your lower extremity, your PT will also check how your balance has changed. With concussions, the patient will need to undergo a neurological exam. This involves checking the alert status, memory, reflexes, muscle tone and presence of involuntary movements. Your PT will also check your ability to perform everyday functional activities like bed mobility and transfers.
After an assessment, the physical therapist will come up with a problem list and a plan. The problem list is organized according to priority. For example, a physical therapist will need to improve your lower extremity strength first before expecting any improvements in balance and coordination.
Treatment — the first few sessions will always be the hardest. The athlete will have to work through the pain (with or without surgery) as he tries to regain back his flexibility and strength. Therapeutic modalities such as heat compression, ice application and electrical stimulation are available to alleviate the pain. Treatment sessions involve a lot of manual therapy to realign and recondition your joints, soft tissue massage to release adhesions made from tight muscles, and lots and lots of strengthening exercises (lifting weights or going against resistance) to prepare your body for hard football work again.
Aside from returning you to play, the main goals of a therapeutic session are to eliminate pain, improve your movement, and prevent any more injuries and possible surgeries.
Besides taking your physical therapy seriously, you can also follow these prevention tips to decrease your risk of traumatic injuries.
- Wear proper equipment and protective gear. Make sure that you are wearing them correctly before every game, including a practice session.
- Strengthen your neck and keep your head up before a tackle. Arms and legs are always worked on during training, but don’t forget your neck muscles.
- Always stretch to warm up your muscles, strengthen them during training.
- Remember to learn and practice proper form and technique.
- Take a break in between trainings and practices. If something is painful, never play through the pain.
Speak to your doctor or physical therapist if you have any concerns about injuries or sports prehab/prevention strategies.
For more information about sports physical therapy, please visit-
https://evolveny.com/physical-therapy
About Evolve Physical Therapy in Brooklyn-
NYC’s Premier Holistic Physical Therapy Clinics-
There’s physical therapy, there’s training, and then there’s EVOLVE. We use the science of biomechanics merged with fitness to help our patients get better and stay better!
First we evaluate, then we heal, then we strengthen our clients so they can reach their goals, feel better, and live happier lives. We do so by utilizing a range of core techniques and specialized treatments to reduce pain, improve mobility, enhance physical strength and deal with the underlying issues, not just the pain itself.
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