Sports Injury Clinic
Sports injuries are injuries that occur when engaging in sports or exercise. Whether you are an athlete or just a sports enthusiast, you will at some stage witness injuries whilst exercising or participating in an activity involving an outreached limited movement of a particular or multiple muscles or joints.
Sports injuries can occur due to overtraining, lack of conditioning, and improper form or technique. Failing to warm up increases the risk of sports injuries such as bruises, strains, sprains, tears, and broken. Soft tissues like muscles, ligaments, tendons, fascia, and bursae may be affected.
Please take a look at the informative video below to find out more
Common Sports Injuries
There are many sports related injuries but the most common could be grouped as follows
Knee Injuries
Perhaps the most common joint disease is Osteoarthritis. Osteoarthritis, a degenerative form of arthritis, causes
Patella & Quadricep Tendinopathy
Overuse problems or malalignment of the knee structures can lead to irritation, strain, and/or injury.
Shoulder Injuries
Shoulder injuries are some of the most common sports-related injuries. Proper shoulder function is essential .
Tendon Ruptures
A ruptured tendon is when the fibrous tissue that attaches muscle to bone tear or rupture. Signs and symptoms of tendon rupture include a
Ligament Sprains & Strains
The most common sports injuries are strains and sprains and the two should not be confused.
Knee Injuries
Perhaps the most common joint disease is Osteoarthritis. Osteoarthritis, a degenerative form of arthritis, causes
Patella & Quadricep Tendinopathy
Overuse problems or malalignment of the knee structures can lead to irritation, strain, and/or injury.
Shoulder Injuries
Shoulder injuries are some of the most common sports-related injuries. Proper shoulder function is essential .
Tendon Ruptures
A ruptured tendon is when the fibrous tissue that attaches muscle to bone tear or rupture. Signs and symptoms of tendon rupture include a
Ligament Sprains & Strains
The most common sports injuries are strains and sprains and the two should not be confused.
How can Regenerative Therapy help me?
An initial consultation will consider the type of condition that needs attention.
If diagnostic imaging is required then this can be organized and decision can be taken taking into account the results of the MRI scan involving a case discussion by our multidisciplinary team. This approach ensures that if a regenerative therapy is believed to be the correct type of intervention, the patient can be advised and make an informed choice as to whether PRP, APS, Stem Cell Treatment or hyaluronic acid injections could be an option for them.
The team at the Regenerative Therapy Centre’s sports injury clinic would be delighted to chat to you and arrange a consultation.
Knee Injuries
Perhaps the most common joint disease is Osteoarthritis. Osteoarthritis, a degenerative form of arthritis, causes bone cartilage to breakdown. Cartilage is the smooth tissue covering bones and cushions joints allowing joint bones to glide smoothly. However, because it’s not supplied with blood vessels, cartilage doesn’t self-repair.
Other types of knee injuries include:
Meniscus Tear
A common knee injury caused by sudden twists of the knee. The meniscus is cartilage in the knee that cushions and stabilizes the knee and protects the bones from wear.
Pes Anserine Bursitis
An inflammation of the bursa (small, fluid-filled sacs that cushion bones and soft tissue) located between the shinbone (tibia) and three tendons of the hamstring muscle at the inside of the knee.
Baker’s Cyst
A protrusion on the back of the knee caused by excess joint fluid compressed by body weight between the bones of the knee joint.
How can regenerative therapy help knee injuries?
Regenerative therapy uses the patient’s own body to help stimulate healing. The patient’s own adult stem cells (also mesenchymal stem cells) have the potential to develop into musculoskeletal cells, such as fat, bone, or cartilage.
Stem cells are found throughout the body and have the potential to become any type of cell—including those found in cartilage. They can help the body regenerate tissue by stimulating healing and reducing the painful effects of osteoarthritis. And furthermore, researchers believe adult stem cells can repair and replace cartilage as well as other tissue damaged by arthritis.
Platelet-rich plasma (PRP) therapy is a process of concentrating platelets that include growth factors and injecting them into an injured area of the body, thereby causing new tissues to form. When these growth factors interact with local cells, new tissue formation begins.
Adult stem cells and PRP are both considered safe because the cells are collected from the patient, minimizing the risk of an unwanted reaction. There is evidence that people with severe arthritis can benefit from stem cell therapy.
Patella & Quadricep Tendinopathy
Overuse problems or malalignment of the knee structures can lead to irritation, strain, and/or injury. These injuries manifest with pain, weakness, and swelling of the knee joint.
What is Patellar tendonitis?
Patellar tendonitis (also known as jumper’s knee) is a common overuse condition associated with running, repeated jumping and landing, and kicking. Tendons, are strong bands of connective tissue that attach your muscles to your bones. When a tendon is injured it is called a strain. Tendonitis occurs when a tendon is inflamed or when there are micro-tears in a tendon from repeated injury.
The patellar tendon is a short and very wide tendon that runs from your patella (kneecap) to the top of your tibia. The patella gives your knee a larger mechanical advantage allowing your quadriceps to generate forces from the knee which are important in any sport with running or jumping elements. The most common cause for inflammation (or tendonitis) of the patellar tendon is overuse or repetitive injury.
How does this affect the quadriceps?
When your quadriceps are overused, the patellar tendon has to absorb more of the shock created by movement. If the quadriceps are inflexible, the patellar tendon has to withstand more friction during movement. Whether you are overusing the tendon or you are inflexible, the tendon may become irritated or damaged. This can result in pain during activity or at rest. Jumping activities place high strains on the tendon and, therefore, the injury is more common in tennis players, track and field athletes, as well as footballers. With repetitive jumping, small, often “microscopic” tearing and injury of the tendon can occur. The chronic injury and healing response results in inflammation and localized pain. Inflammation of the patellar tendon, just below the kneecap, weakens the tendon and can cause small tears.
What does it feel like?
Patellar tendonitis symptoms vary from person to person but typically involve some or all of the following characteristics:
• Pain, tenderness, swelling, warmth, or redness over the patellar tendon, just under the kneecap.
• Pain and occasional loss of strength when aggressively straightening the knee (like when jumping or rising from a seated or squatting position).
• Pain and occasional loss of strength when bending the knee completely, squatting or kneeling.
• Crackling sound when the tendon is moved or touched.
Shoulder Injuries
Shoulder injuries are some of the most common sports-related injuries. Proper shoulder function is essential in almost every sport, and imperative in sports such as tennis, golf, basketball and football. Minimally invasive options to treat these injuries, such as stem cell therapy and PRP, allow patients to quickly recover and return to activity with as little downtime as possible.
Many different types of shoulder injuries can be sustained during sports trauma. Dislocations, fractures, contusions and rotator cuff damage account for the majority of the typical shoulder sport injuries.
Can PRP and Stem Cell Therapy help a Rotator Cuff Injury?
Rotator cuff injuries, in particularly, can be helped by stem cell therapy or PRP. The rotator cuff is comprised of a group of muscles and tendons that connect the upper arm bone to the shoulder blade. This group of tendons and muscles holds the upper arm bone firmly into the shoulder socket. This combination of muscles, tendons and bones creates the greatest range of motion of any joint in the body. The typical rotator cuff injury presents with pain, stiffness, weakness and loss of range of motion to the shoulder.
Stem cell injections for rotator cuff tears can be an option depending on the severity of the damage to the tendons of the rotator cuff, a determination can be made as to the best mode of treatment. Complete tears typically require surgical repair. Partial tears to the rotator cuff are often excellent candidates for stem cell treatment to the shoulder. Accurate diagnosis of a shoulder injury is imperative to deciding on a treatment plan, and often requires MRI examination to identify the specifics of a rotator cuff injury.
Stem cell therapy or PRP may offer an excellent alternative for patients looking to avoid shoulder joint replacement surgery, as well as many other surgical treatments for shoulder pain. By opting for stem cell therapy or PRP, patients typically have a much quicker recovery, far less post-operative pain, speedy return to work, and a decreased need for physical therapy.
Stem cell therapy or PRP may offer an excellent alternative for patients looking to avoid shoulder joint replacement surgery, as well as many other surgical treatments for shoulder pain. By opting for stem cell therapy or PRP, patients typically have a much quicker recovery, far less post-operative pain, speedy return to work, and a decreased need for physical therapy.
At the Regenerative Therapy Centre’s sports injury clinic, sports injuries are treated using a combination of Regenerative interventions using evidence based approaches to treat musculoskeletal conditions. All treatments are given as part of an integrated approach and a bespoke treatment package is formulated for each patient.
If chronic joint pain is limiting your daily routine or preventing you from activities you enjoy, cellular therapy may be the answer you’ve been looking for!
Tendon Ruptures
A ruptured tendon is when the fibrous tissue that attaches muscle to bone tear or rupture. Signs and symptoms of tendon rupture include a snap or pop that you can hear followed almost immediately by severe pain. Other signs and symptoms include immediate or rapid bruising, weakness and inability to use or move the affected area (the arm, knee, foot, for example), swelling or deformity of the area and the person’s inability to bear or lift weight with the affected body part.
What causes a Tendon Rupture?
Specific injuries can produce specific signs and symptoms; for example, the shoulder’s rotator cuff rupture will not allow a person to bring their arm out to the side while a quadriceps tendon rupture results in the inability to extend the knee completely.
Cause of a ruptured tendon in most people is direct trauma to the tendon that causes it to twist and tear or to pop apart when it exceeds its stress limit.
Common ruptures include:
- Achilles Tendon Rupture
- Tennis Elbow
- Golfer’s Elbow
- Gluteal Tendon Tears
Ligament Sprains & Strains
The most common sports injuries are strains and sprains and the two should not be confused.
Most sprains occur as a result of overstretching. A ligament connects two bones together and forms a joint. Overstretching in any of the ligaments can cause a sprain and lead to joint pain. A common sprain would be to the ankle.
What is the difference in a sprain and strain?
People use the words “sprain” and “strain” almost interchangeably, to describe everything from a twisted ankle to a pulled hamstring. But they’re not the same..
A sprain is a stretch or tear in a ligament. Ligaments are bands of fibrous tissue that connect bones to bones at joints.
A strain is also a stretch or tear, but it happens in a muscle or a tendon. Tendons link muscles to the bones.
How Do Sprains Happen?
Sprains usually happen when a person falls, twists, or is hit in a way that forces the body out of its normal position.
The most common type of sprain is a sprained ankle. Think of a runner who goes over a curb and catches her foot, twisting the ankle; or a football player who slides into a base and twists his knee.
Wrist and thumb sprains are also common, particularly in sports like skiing, where it’s not unusual to fall and land on an outstretched palm.
Athletes in contact sports, like football, hockey, and boxing, have the biggest chance of strains. Even in noncontact sports like tennis, golf, or rowing, doing the same motions over and over can lead to strains of the hand and forearm.
These injuries can happen when you work out at the gym, or they can happen at home or the workplace, especially if you do a lot of heavy lifting.
How Can You Tell the Difference?
The signs of most sprains or strains are very similar: pain and inflammation, and sometimes bruising, at the injured area. Depending on how bad the sprain or strain is, the pain may be mild, moderate, or severe.
The worse the sprain or strain, the harder it is to use the affected area. Someone with a mild ankle sprain may just favour that ankle slightly. A more severe ankle sprain may cause much more pain and make it tough or impossible to walk.
If you have a sprain, your doctor may mention its “grade”:
- Grade I is stretching of the ligament or a very mild tear, with little or no instability at the joint.
- Grade II is a more serious but still incomplete tear, with some looseness in the joint.
- Grade III is a completely torn or ruptured ligament. This is not a broken bone, but can feel like one since it’s often impossible to put weight on the joint or use the affected limb because the joint isn’t stable.