Injury Prevention | WAHS Rehab & Sports Medicine Sports Medicine Guide / Info for Coaches / Injury Prevention

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Footwear
Footwear could mean the difference between success, failure, or injury during sports activities. The two types of footwear to consider are socks and shoes. Poorly fitted socks can cause abnormal stresses on the foot and even more damaging are improperly fitted shoes.

All athletic socks should be clean, dry, and without holes.

Socks that are the wrong size can cause blisters or calluses.

Improperly fitted shoes cause abnormal pressures on the foot which can lead to postural imbalances, predispose injuries to the leg and foot, and are known to create hip and low back pain.

Athletic shoes should be replaced annually to prevent injuries due to worn out shoes.

Athletes with abnormal (high or flat) arches should ensure that their footwear adequately supports their arch. These athletes may benefit from an over-the-counter arch support or referral to a podiatrist.

To ensure that you are buying the proper size shoe, make sure that the eyelets are about one inch apart when the shoe is tied. When the distance is greater than that, the shoe is too small. When the distance is less than that, the shoe is too big.

Only wear shoes that are manufactured for that particular sport.

Overuse Injury
Overuse injuries are caused by abnormal and repetitive stress on the body. By specifically training the major muscle groups used in each sport you can decrease the likelihood of overuse injuries.

Most of these injuries in athletes occur when throwing, running, and/or jumping.

Common overuse injuries in athletes include: shin splints, Achilles tendonitis, Osgood-Schlatter disease, stress fracture, rotator cuff tendonitis, patellar tendonitis.

If an athlete sustains an overuse injury a pain-free alternative training method should be implemented until the injury resolves (e.g. pool or bike).

It is necessary for athletes to use good technique (e.g. throwing, tackling, serving, blocking, kicking) to optimize performance and prevent injury.

Consult books or local sports medicine facility for information on proper techniques for each sport.

Pre-Participation Physical Exam
Every athlete of freshman and junior status is required to have a physical examination by a physician prior to the start of the season.

It is recommended that the exam should be accomplished six weeks prior to the start of the season. This would allow time to address any physical limitations that the physician feels would limit performance.

The physical examination will include: vital signs, height, weight, eyes, ears, nose, throat, and identify previous injuries as well as predisposing conditions such as lack of strength/muscle imbalance, flexibility, and joint laxity.

The physician will perform a complete medical history that identifies allergies, family history, medications, surgeries, and major illnesses. It is important that coaches are aware of allergies and current medications of all athletes.

Proper Warm-Up
It is important for every athlete to aerobically warm-up prior to practice, competition, or workout to prevent injury.

Jog, bike, roller blade, etc. for at least five minutes to increase elasticity of the muscles and increase blood flow throughout the body.

Follow immediately by static stretches to large muscle groups (e.g. hamstrings, quads, calves, shoulder, back) for at least 20 seconds x 2

Strength
It is important for athletes to maintain a strength training program pre-season, in-season, and post-season which should include core strengthening (abdominals, hips, and back) and sports specific strengthening exercises.

Insufficient strength or muscle imbalance can make an athlete more susceptible to tears, strains, tendonitis, or ligament injury.

For more information on sports specific strength training, contact your areas Certified Athletic Trainer, Sports Medicine facility, or available literature.

Terrain
It is important to be aware of the type of terrain athletes are training on in order to prevent injuries. There has been an ongoing debate over the advantages and disadvantages of artificial surfaces as compared with natural surfaces (3). However, most people in sports agree that more injuries are likely to occur on artificial surfaces due to their loss of shock absorption. The following can cause overuse injuries:

Repetitively running on hills, stairs, same side of road, same direction on track

Surfaces without shock absorption such as pavement, floors, or hard packed ground

Uneven surfaces/holes in playing surfaces

First Aid Tips