INJURY MANAGEMENT
What is an injury according to a physiotherapist?
Anything that causes you to miss training/games should be discussed with the coach/physio. Therefore accurate and prompt diagnosis is essential to create an optimal management plan. If you experience an injury event, we request that you see a physiotherapist for assessment/management as soon as possible. If you have soreness with no defined event that does not improve over 2-3 days this is also the time to seek management.
How to manage an acute injury
Immediate response- Day 1 to 3
PEACE
Protect: Unload the injured limb for up to 3 days. Let pain be the guide as to when you should remove protection.
Elevate: Elevate the limb above the heart to allow drainage of swelling.
Avoid: Anti Inflammatory modalities.
Compress: Use external compression garments such as bandages or tapes to limit bleeding from spreading.
Educate: Teach the athlete that an active approach is the best way to recover. Modalities such as electrotherapy, manual therapy and acupuncture have trivial effects.
DO NOT ATTEMPT: H-A-R-M
HEAT
ALCOHOL
RE-INJURY
MASSAGE (on inflamed areas should be avoided for at least 72 hours.)
Next steps- Day 4+
LOVE
Load: Early mobility assists repair of damaged tissue through mechanotransduction.
Optimism: Pessimism leads to suboptimal outcomes.
Vascularisation: Blood flow improves healing.
Exercise: Do exercises to restore mobility, strength and proprioception.
Recovering from soreness and fatigue
1. Rehydrate and Refuel. Weigh yourself to see how much water you lost.
2. Ensure you are getting at least 7 hours sleep per night.
3. Have a relaxation routine.
4. Self-massage is excellent for recovery.
Injury Prevention
It is your responsibility to record accurate data, and remember load is not just basketball related activity. Communicate with your coach/physio if there are incoming stressors that put “more on your plate”. Let us know about time away from sport, for example, illness/study/holidays. The dips in load are as important as the spikes.
Concussion
Concussion refers to the disturbance in brain function due to trauma. It can occur due to a knock to the head or to the body that results in a ‘whiplash’ mechanism. If concussion is suspected, the athlete must be removed from play immediately. Please refer to the following mobile apps to assist in identifying concussion.
Concussion Return to Play protocol:
*do not progress to the next step if you still have symptoms of concussion STEPS (one per day)*
1. Symptom-limited activity: No school/sport/ Watching TV/ going for a walk.
2. Light aerobic exercise: An easy jog or a bike ride.
3. Sport-specific, light non-contact exercise: Dribbling the basketball and taking some shots.
4. Non-contact training drills.
5. Full-contact practice.
6. Return to sport without restrictions.
Returning to school protocol after a concussion:
STEPS (one per day)
1. Complete rest at home.
2. Home with light mental activity.
3. Do not return to school until you can manage up to 60 minutes of mental exertion.
4. Part time school – essential classes and no homework.
5. Part time school – essential classes with 30 minutes of homework.
6. Full time school – no tests and no extracurricular activities.
7. Full time school as per normal
*Medical clearance by a Medical Practitioner must be obtained before return to play/training*
Symptomatic COVID
The most commonly reported symptoms of long COVID are: fatigue, breathlessness, muscle soreness, chest pain, difficulty concentrating, anxiety, and depression
Return to play:
Rule of thumb- Double the days you have been unwell to dictate when you return to match fitness, for example: If you were sick for seven days, you should not be available to play for at least 14 more days. At a minimum you should be symptoms free for seven days before returning to full training. Symptoms lasting longer than a month should be closely monitored by your local GP/Nurse.
Useful References: Basketball Sports Medicine and Science eBook by Laver, L., Kocaoglu, B., Cole, B., Arundale, A. J. H., Bytomski, J., & Amendola, A. (Eds.). (2020) https://scihub. se/https://link.springer.com/book/10. 1007/978-3-662-61070-1
