Rugby
Common Injuries for Rugby Players
Rugby is a high intensity sport that requires constant movement, impact and contact. This exposes players to a higher incidence of injuries. Common injuries for rugby have been spilt up by lower and upper body injury categories.
Lower Limb Injuries
Occurs more often than injuries to other parts of the body, such as the head, shoulder and torso. This includes medial collateral ligament, ACL sprains, ankle ligament sprains, muscle contusion, medial tibial stress syndrome, and patellar femoral joint discomfort.Muscle Contusion
Majority of the soft tissue contusion are towards the lower limb more than upper limb. This occurs with bone against muscle contact causing bruising, muscle spasms and swelling. What can you do? Ice, gentle surface massage or use light elastic tape to cover the bruised area to aid in speed of recovery. Consider wearing a sleeve brace to support fatigue muscles. What can MyPhysio do?- Provide manual therapy to releases muscles around the area
- Kinesiology taping to improve the rate of recovery and clearing of the bruises
- Provide guidance on how to properly stretch and release the area and progressively return back to rugby without compensations
Knee Pain (Patellofemoral Pain Syndrome)
Rugby requires a myriad of movement patterns including cutting, jumps, back peddling etc. Most knee problems occur with fatigue, which leads to poor footwork and greater use of the knee joint vs the muscles. The repetitive start stop torque on the knee along with decreasing knee stability from fatigue will increase the loading stress over the knee joint. What can you do? Consider wearing a sleeve brace to support fatigue muscles when playing long matches, Regular conditioning and muscle relaxation therapy to balance out tension build up in the muscle around the knee. What can MyPhysio do? We will usually start with some knee testing to see what structures are involved if there is no prior MRIs taken. Next we check on your balance and foot structure. Provide good advice on proper rest and certain movement patterns to avoid. Sports Enhancement Our first goal is to get you pain free while concurrently improving on your knee mechanics to maximize usage of your knee musculature rather than your knee joint or ligaments. We go through footwork drills, strength and conditioning advice to correct muscle imbalance and optimise mechanic efficiency, strength and power to reduce risk of injury.Knee Ligament and Meniscus strain
Rugby requires a myriad of movement patterns including cutting, jumps, back peddling etc. Most knee problems occur with fatigue, which leads to poor biomechanic and more use of the knee joint vs the muscles. The increase torque on the knee along with decreasing knee stability from fatigue may lead to ligament and meniscus strains, accentuate from external tackle. What can you do? Rest from training and seek appropriate medical advise if pain persist. Consider wearing a sleeve brace to support fatigued muscles. What can MyPhysio do? We will usually start with some knee testing to see what structures are involved if there is no prior MRIs taken. Next we check on your balance and foot structure. Provide good advice on proper activity and movement modification to optimise movement mechanic. Sports Enhancement Our first goal is to get you pain free while concurrently improve on your knee mechanics to maximize usage of your knee musculature rather than your knee jointor ligaments. We go through footwork drills, strength and conditioning advice to correct muscle imbalance and optimise mechanic efficiency, strength and power to reduce risk of injuryAnkle Sprains
Chronic ankle instability? Accidentally step on someone's foot when landing? Ankle sprains are the most common problems we see at the clinic for rugby injuries What can you do? Do not untie your shoelaces until you get a chance to ice the foot, otherwise the swelling in the foot will be accelerated and cause more pain. Ice it on and off for 10 min cycles, 2 to 3 times right after the sprain happens or when you get home. What can MyPhysio do? There are a few things we will check to assess the situation. Check the severity of the sprain and which ligament are affected, and if it requires recommend an X-ray or MRI. Check for stability of the ankle, provide recommendations for stability braces if needed, Correct any biomechanical compensations that may cause future problems, manage the pain, and provide exercises to prevent further injury. Recommendation to see a orthopedic foot specialist. Sports Enhancement Check stability with cutting, jump and landing positions. Check running mechanics and foot work for sprinting and passing.Upper Limb Injuries (Shoulder Dislocations and AC joint Sprains)
There are lesser incidences of upper limb injuries. Some commonly reported ones are acromioclavicular(AC) joint sprains and shoulder dislocations due to high impact from tackling. What can you do? Rest from training, ice and use a sling if the shoulder is unstable. Seek appropriate medical advise if you require relocation of the shoulder, if pain persist, or you feel nerve symptoms in the arm such as numbness, tingling or weakness. Consider wearing a shoulder brace or taping to stabilize the shoulder joint. What can MyPhysio do? We will usually start with some shoulder testing to determine severity of injury and where the dislocation has occurred. Check on your upper limb strength, flexibility and coordination. Provide advice on proper ROM exercises to keep the joint moving while it heals Do progressive strengthening and conditioning exercises to stabilize the shoulder joint without harming the recovery. Program to return to sport with specific throwing and overhead strengthening exercises.Sports Enhancement Our first goal make the shoulder feel stable when you fall on the arm, get tackled or get hit in the shoulder. Improving your shoulder mechanics to maximize stability of your shoulder joint musculature rather than stressing the ligaments and joint capsule. We go through strength, control, coordination, balance and power of the upper limb to reduce risk of re-injury or dislocations.
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