SPORTS INJURY

CLASSIFICATION
Classifying Sports
Injuries
 Before injuries can be evaluated,
inspected and recognized, they must
be classified and defined
 Need to know the major anatomy,
causation, and forces involved in the
injury
Primary Injuries

 One that results directly from the

stress imposed by a particular sport
 Acute- caused by trauma
 Chronic- result from overuse
 Externally or intrinsically caused
Primary Injuries

 Macrotrauma- most frequent cause of

athletic injuries
– Fractures, dislocations, contusion, strains
 Microtrauma- result of repetitive
overloading of the body associated
with continuous training/conditioning
– tendonitis
Secondary Injuries

 May arise if the injury has not been

properly treated initially
 May arise if the athlete has been
allowed to return to competition too
soon
 Early secondary problems- chronic
swelling, joint laxity, weakness
 Later secondary problems- arthritis,
repeated re-injury, instability
Mechanical Forces of
Injury
 Compressive
 Tensile
 Shear
 Stress
 Strain
 Elastic Limit
 Plastic Deformation
Mechanical Forces of
Injury
 Bending
 Torsion
 Physical Activity

Muscle Fatigue
Altered Movement Altered Recruitment Altered
Patterns Patterns Proprioception

Abnormal Loading

Altered Stress Distribution

Increase in Compressive Increase in Tensile Forces

Forces

Tissue Stress/Strain
Anatomical Classification

 External injuries: skin, wound is

highly visible
 Internal and unexposed injuries:
muscles, ligament, bone, cartilage,
nerves, joint capsules
Exposed Skin Injuries

 Abrasion
 Laceration
 Incision
 Puncture wound
 Impaled object
 Burns
Unexposed Injuries

 Unexposed or closed wounds in sports

include those injuries which do not
penetrate the epidermal skin layer
Injury Classification

 Majority of athletic injuries involve the

neuromusculoskeletal system
 Osseous, soft tissue or nerve injuries
 Body tissues: bone, cartilage, muscle,
tendon, ligament, skin, bursa, nerve
Fractures

 A disruption in the continuity of a bone

 Simple = Closed
 Compound = Open
 Different mechanisms will result in
different patterns of fractures
Types of Fractures

 Greenstick - incomplete fracture. The

broken bone is not completely separated.
 Stress - is one type of incomplete fracture in
bones. It is caused by unusual or repeated
stress
 Epiphysial - a fracture involving the
epiphyseal plate of a long bone
 Compound –a fracture were the bone
protrudes through the skin
Dislocation

 When at least one bone in an

articulation is forced out of its normal
and proper alignment
 Bone ends are no longer in contact
 Luxation (complete separation)
 Sub-luxation- partial congruency
remains
Contusion

 A compression injury caused by a

sudden traumatic blow to the body
 Soft tissue is compressed against the
bone resulting in capillary damage
 Bruise
Hematoma

 Formed by the localization of blood

leaking into a clot that becomes
encapsulated by a connective tissue
membrane
Myositis Ossificans

 Accumulation of calcium deposits in

muscle tissue (ectopic calcification)
 Result of repeated blows to the same
area
 May have accumulation in the muscle
belly or spur projecting from the
underlying bone
Strain

 A stretch, tear or separation in the

muscle or adjacent tissue such as the
fascia or tendon
 Result of overstretching or a forced
contraction against too much
resistance
 Classified as grade 1,2 or 3; 1st, 2nd or
3rd degree
Tendon and Muscle Injuries
GRADE SIGNS IMPLICATIONS
 First Degree
 • Minimal loss of
 structural integrity
 • No abnormal motion
 • Little of no swelling
 • Localized tenderness
 • Minimal bruising
 • Minimal function
 loss
 • Early return to
 training
 • Some protection
 may be required
 Second Degree
 (Moderate)
 • Significant structural
 weakening
 • Some abnormal motion
 • Solid end feel to stress
 • Bruising & swelling
 • Often associated
 hemarthrosis and
 effusion
 • Tendency to
 recurrence
 • Need to protect
 from risk of further
 injury
 • May need modified
 immobilization
 • May stretch out
 further with time
 Third Degree
 (Complete)
 • Loss of structural
 integrity
 • Marked abnormal
 motion
 • Significant bruising
 • Hemarthrosis
 • Needs prolonged
 protection
 • Surgery may be
 required
 • Often permanent
 functional instability
Muscle Cramp

 A painful involuntary muscle

contraction
 May be the result of dehydration,
fatigue
Muscle Guarding

 Involuntary muscle contractions that

occur in response to pain following
musculoskeletal injury
 Spasm or spasticity- increased tone of
muscle due to upper motor neuron
lesion in the brain
Muscle Atrophy

 A gradual wasting away of muscle due

to disease
 May be due to neurological injury or
pain inhibition
Muscle Contracture

 Abnormal shortening of muscle and

other soft tissue where there is a great
deal of resistance to passive stretch
Sprain

 A stretch or separation of ligamentous

fibres resulting from a force causing a
joint to move beyond its normal limits
of motion
 Classified as per strains
Tendonitis

 Inflammation and tenderness of a

tendon with a gradual onset caused by
repeated microtrauma and
degenerative change
 Degenerative changes in a tendon
“with-out” inflammation process
Bursitis

 Inflammation of a bursa caused by

overuse of muscle or tendon at a bony
prominence, or by constant external
compression or trauma
 Result from friction leading to
inflammation and irritation which
causes the bursa to produce large
amounts of synovial fluid
Nerve Injuries

 Result of tensile or compressive forces

 Can have sensory or motor changes
 Grade 1- interuption of function of the
nerve without anatomical damage
 Grade 2- interuption of function of the
nerve with degeneration
 Grade 3- total degeneration of the
nerve
Pain

 Referred pain
– pain that is perceived at a location
remote from the injured site
 Radiating pain
– pain that is felt both at its source and
along a nerve
Referred pain locations for different visceral organs
Work Cited

 Kin 321 – Sports Injury Prevention,

Identification and Management, Bruce
Craven