5 Common Sports Injuries and How They’re Treated

You don’t have to be a professional athlete to get a sports injury. A weekend run, a pickup basketball game, a round of golf, or a new workout routine can leave you dealing with unexpected pain that makes your favorite activities a lot less enjoyable.

The good news? You don’t have to push through the pain or give up the activities you love. Sports medicine can help identify exactly what happened, treat the injury, and get you moving again.

At Serenity Osteopathic, LLC, in Satellite Beach, Florida, Tiffany Noblitt, DO, provides diagnosis and treatment for many types of sports injuries. Here’s a quick look at some of the most common.

1. Ligament sprains

A sprain happens when you stretch or tear a ligament, often after a sudden twist or awkward landing. Ankle and wrist sprains are especially common. 

Treatment depends on the severity of your injury. It can include activity modification, therapeutic exercises, stretching, and osteopathic manipulative treatment (OMT) to improve mobility and reduce pain.

2. Muscle and tendon strains

Strains affect muscles or tendons and often happen when you overdo a workout, make a sudden movement, or repeatedly stress the same area. Resting the injured area helps, although complete inactivity isn’t always the answer. 

Your treatment plan can include exercises, stretching, movement guidance, and changes to the way you perform certain activities.

3. Overuse injuries

Overuse injuries can cause chronic pain if not addressed. Treatment focuses on addressing what’s contributing to the problem. That can include taking a break, modifying your activities, improving biomechanics, doing therapeutic exercises, and undergoing treatments such as trigger point injections when appropriate.

4. Joint injuries

Pain in your joints can make everything from running and lifting to walking and climbing stairs uncomfortable. The source isn’t always obvious. 

Dr. Noblitt looks at how your muscles, joints, nerves, posture, and movement patterns work together. From there, she can develop a treatment plan that may include minimally invasive procedures like dry needling.

5. Concussions

A concussion is a mild brain injury that can happen after a blow or jolt to your head. Multiple studies indicate that OMT has been found useful in managing post-concussion symptoms. (If you lost consciousness for any amount of time or are disoriented after a blow to the head, immediate medical care is advised.)

Osteopathic sports medicine looks beyond the injury itself to understand how your body moves and restore you to peak condition. To learn more, contact Serenity Osteopathic today.