What Should Your Recovery Look Like After a Serious Sports Injury?

While engaging in sports has several health benefits, it comes with its fair share of risks as well. In particular, accidents can happen when you least expect them and they result in a range of serious sports injuries such as joint dislocation, torn ligaments, and cartilage tears.

Recovering from these kinds of injuries often involves seeing an orthopaedic surgeon, physical therapist, and sports medicine specialist. These medical professionals won’t only treat your injuries, but also develop a recovery plan tailored to your needs. Depending on the type of serious sports injury you’re experiencing, you might undergo one or more of the following:  

Physical Therapy

Physical therapy involves a range of treatments and exercises designed to help patients regain their strength, mobility, and overall function after an injury is healed. The main goal is to restore normal function and prevent future injuries. Physical therapy helps treat a variety of sports injuries, including ligament sprains, muscle strains, fractures, and dislocations. It can also significantly reduce recovery time by improving blood circulation, reducing inflammation, and promoting healing. 

Moreover, physical therapy is also vital in managing pain and reducing reliance on medications. Techniques such as stretching, strengthening exercises, and the use of modalities like ice and heat can alleviate discomfort and enhance the healing process. 

By addressing muscle imbalances and improving biomechanics, physical therapy can help treat immediate injury and prevent re-injury, making it an essential component of a comprehensive recovery plan. A physical therapy treatment plan can last anywhere from 6 to 8 weeks, with 60- to 90-minute sessions two to three times a week, depending on the severity of the injury.

Manual Therapy

Manual therapy is a hands-on technique used by physical therapists to manipulate muscles, joints, and soft tissues. This type of therapy includes methods such as massage and joint mobilisation. The goal of manual therapy is to reduce pain, increase range of motion, and improve tissue health by directly targeting the affected areas.

Manual therapy is particularly beneficial for treating musculoskeletal injuries such as muscle strains, ligament sprains, and joint dysfunctions. For instance, it can effectively address lower back pain caused by muscle tension or spinal misalignment. In addition to alleviating pain and improving mobility, manual therapy also helps in reducing inflammation and swelling. It enhances blood flow to the injured tissues, which accelerates the healing process. 

Hydrotherapy

Hydrotherapy, also known as aquatic therapy, involves exercises performed in water. The buoyancy, resistance, and therapeutic properties of water make it an excellent medium for rehabilitation. What’s great about hydrotherapy is that it reduces the load on joints, allowing for safer and less painful movements compared to land-based exercises. It’s particularly effective for individuals recovering from surgeries, such as knee or hip replacements, or those with conditions like arthritis. 

Hydrotherapy also aids in improving cardiovascular fitness, flexibility, and balance. The warm water used in hydrotherapy pools can help relax muscles, reduce pain, and increase circulation, which further aids in the healing process. Those who are suffering from pain or stiffness due to overuse injuries can find significant relief and functional improvement through regular hydrotherapy sessions. After surgery recovery, you may continue with hydrotherapy or other water-based exercises to keep joints and muscles limber.

Electrotherapy

Electrotherapy involves the use of electrical energy to treat various conditions. This treatment encompasses a variety of techniques, including transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS), electrical muscle stimulation (EMS), and ultrasound therapy to reduce pain, enhance muscle function, and accelerate tissue healing.

TENS can provide pain relief by delivering low-voltage electrical currents to the skin, which helps block pain signals to the brain. This makes it an excellent option for patients dealing with chronic pain from conditions like tennis elbow or plantar fasciitis. EMS, on the other hand, stimulates muscle contractions by transmitting electrical impulses through electrodes that are applied directly to the skin. This can prevent muscle atrophy during periods of immobilisation and improve muscle strength during rehabilitation. Finally, ultrasound therapy uses soundwaves to penetrate deep tissues, promoting increased blood flow and reducing inflammation. This makes it beneficial for injuries like bursitis or acute muscle injuries.

Range of Motion Programmes

As the name implies, range of motion (ROM) programmes focus on restoring the normal movement and range of motion of joints and muscles, which is often compromised due to injury, surgery, or prolonged immobilisation. Many injuries such as frozen shoulder, post-surgical knee stiffness, or ankle sprains can be treated using ROM.

ROM exercises can be classified into passive, active-assistive, and active movements. Passive ROM exercises involve the therapist moving the injured joint through its range without the patient’s muscle activation. This helps maintain joint flexibility and prevent stiffness. Active-assistive exercises involve some effort from the patient, with additional support from the therapist or equipment. This makes it useful for the early stages of recovery. Meanwhile, active ROM exercises have patients move their joints independently to improve strength and control.

Functional and Sports-Specific Training

Last but not least, functional and sports-specific training focuses on preparing athletes to return to action. This type of training is tailored to the demands of the specific sport, ensuring that athletes regain both their general fitness and their specialised skills needed for peak sporting performance. It involves exercises that mimic everyday movements and activities, such as squatting, lunging, and lifting to improve overall strength, balance, and coordination. 

In addition, sports-specific training typically incorporates drills that replicate the actions of an athlete’s sport. For instance, a basketball player recovering from an ankle injury might practise jumping and pivoting drills to ensure their ankle can handle the dynamic movements. This type of training helps bridge the gap between rehabilitation and full return to sport, ensuring that the athlete is physically and mentally prepared for the rigours of competition.

Recovering from a serious sports injury can be a stressful experience. However, by working with a team of dedicated medical professionals and following tailored treatment and rehabilitation plans, you can achieve a holistic and effective recovery process.