Month: February 2017

In a league of exclusively freakish athletes, Derrick Rose is probably the most freakish of all. LeBron James has openly admitted in the past that it’s “impossible” to guard him one on one, such is the absurdity of his speed and agility on the court. The only problem, his attorney from http://www.braininjurylawyersorangecounty.com/ asserts is, he can’t seem to go 10 games without getting injured anymore. It’s been a horror run for Rose since 2011 when, in the first round of playoffs, he crumpled to the ground after landing awkwardly on his left leg and rupturing his ACL. Then, after having the ligament reconstructed via patellar tendon graft and returning two seasons later, Rose proceeded to tear the meniscus in his other knee during a simple change of direction. He missed another 5 months with that injury. Allegedly back to full health when this season started, Rose has not been able to string games together. His knees, thank goodness, have been fine. But...

Rod Laver Arena and Melbourne Park are about to become the centre of the world for two weeks, which is reason enough to discuss the injury named after the sport that’ll be happening there. Tennis elbow is a broad term for lateral elbow pain, and is certainly not restricted to tennis players. It can occur in golfers, rowers, crossfit enthusiasts, people that type a lot, people that garden a lot, people that carry babies a lot, and people with generally poor upper body posture. Typically it refers to tendon injury of the wrist extensor muscles near their attachment at the elbow. Pain can come on gradually over months, or due to a single bout of unaccustomed activity or other acutely painful event to the area, such as a direct blow. The causes of tennis elbow are wide-ranging and virtually always multi-factorial. Dysfunction in the neck has been shown to contribute significantly to elbow symptoms, as has muscle imbalance around the shoulder girdle....

Fast bowling injuries account for two thirds of all cricket games missed. The ‘side strain’ has become an increasingly frequent injury among fast bowlers (James Faulkner, Chris Brasure and now Pat Cummins have succumbed to it in the last month), and typically refers to a tear in the internal oblique muscle that attaches to the 8th-12th ribs and the iliac crest on the pelvis. Like most muscular strain injuries, risk factors for the ‘side strain’ include, but are not limited to: lack of adequate warm-up, older age, lack of specific conditioning, muscle fatigue, and overexertion. Pain will be immediate when a strain occurs, and depending on severity will limit your performance for the rest of the session to somewhere between less effective than usual and completely unable to continue bowling. It’s important to distinguish between these acute ‘side strains’ and the more progressive, overuse injury called a spondylolysis. This is a stress fracture of part of one vertebra, and will usually...

Hamstring tears are the most common injury in virtually all football codes. Astoundingly, given the enormous advances in sports medicine, their incidence seems to have stayed constant throughout the last decade or so. This article will highlight what the body of literature surrounding hamstring injury has been able to demonstrate in that period of time. Things that don’t reduce risk of hamstring strain. Stretching. This seems to be a very poorly known fact, as stretching is still rampant throughout local footy leagues. If you’re going to do sustained hold stretching, do it during the week (at work, before you go to bed). Definitely do not stretch an hour before your match on the weekend, as it temporarily reduce hamstring strength, thereby increasing your risk of injury. Things that do reduce risk. Let’s start with the obvious ones. Thorough active warm-up, strong hamstrings and gluteals, good lower limb muscular endurance, and good aerobic/anaerobic capacity. Running fast, regularly. Peter Brukner, a leading Australian sports physician, believes...

Cycling can have excellent cardiovascular and muscular effects on the body but, like any activity, it can also lead to injury if technique and biomechanics aren’t correctly employed. In cycling, there is an intimate relationship between body and machine, and so it is vital that your machine is properly fit out to suit your specific parameters in order to get the best outcome from your body and stay injury-free. Injuries related to tumbles are unfortunately an unavoidable aspect of cycling; where bike fit outs can help relates more to the gradual onset, niggling injuries that can worsen over time. Such injuries may manifest as head, neck and shoulder pain from a poor upper body posture, as well as excessive weight-bearing through the upper limbs on the handlebars (Eddie Merckx, winner of multiple Tour De France titles, likened his force applied through the handlebars to that of playing a piano). Another common issue can be pain at the front of the knee,...

With this glorious weather splashing Melbourne in sunshine, people are becoming more and more active. This is the time for overuse injuries to develop, particularly in the leg and feet. The colder months tend to make people less active, leading to a gradual (yet inevitable) deconditioning in your muscles, ligaments and joints. When you restart regular exercise, these tissues can bite back and become inflamed, degenerative and painful. You may think this only effects those who exercise heavily. Yes, it is more common in the athletic types. However, the same injuries can occur in someone who does regular walks for exercise – the same muscles, ligaments and joints are being used and overused! Symptoms to look out for include: • Pain in the sole of the foot, especially when putting your foot down from bed as you wake up. • Aches in the arches of the feet. • Heel pain during or after exercise. • Pain around the ankle joint. • Pain through the shins. • Pain at the...