Whether you are playing a sport professionally or for fun, it demands physical activity. Sports or outdoor games are a great way to stay healthy and release some stress. Injuries are pretty common in sports, but you can avoid them with some precautions like a proper warm-up, stretching, correct posture and technique while playing and not pushing you too hard on the field.

When it comes to sports injuries, some injuries are more common than others. Knees, shoulders and ankles are the most susceptible body parts that may get injured during sports. Given below are some of the most common sports injuries experienced by athletes:

1. Ankle Sprain

Ankle sprains are a common injury in sports like hockey, football, basketball and others where running and turning quickly is required. It typically occurs when the ankle is twisted or forced inwards and the ligament is stretched or torn in the process.

Proper exercises to strengthen and stretch the ankles are required to prevent this injury from occurring regularly.

2. Concussions

Concussions often occur in contact sports where chances of getting a blow to the head are high. It can cause dizziness or disorientation and similar symptoms to the injured athlete. Multiple concussions can cause damage to the brain and have a lifelong adverse effect. These injuries are pretty common in sports like American football, hockey, rugby, football, boxing, etc.

3. ACL Tear

The role of Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL) is to connect our thighbones to the shin bones. They help in stabilizing our knee joint. But an injury in ACL is severe, causing knees to swell and feel unstable and too painful to carry with our weight. It can sideline players from sports action for months. They typically occur when the athlete stops suddenly or tries to change directions or lands in an awkward position after jumping.

4. Pulled Muscles

Pulling of muscles is common in sports where running, jumping and sudden stopping and starting is required. These pulls commonly occur in the groin, calves and hamstrings. It can be moderately painful. Regular stretching and proper warm-up before playing can help prevent these injuries.

5. Shoulder Injuries

Shoulder injuries in sports are usually restricted to shoulder dislocation and rotator cuff tear. A shoulder dislocation occurs when a bone is forced out of its socket. It can take 12 to 16 weeks to completely recover from this injury.

Rotator cuffs consist of four pieces of muscles and enable our shoulders to move in all directions. In this case, depending on the severity of the injury, complete recovery can take from a few weeks to a few months.

How to Treat Sports Injuries?

Swelling and pain are the common instant outcomes of injuries. The most common and popular method of treating sports injuries is the RICE method. It involves rest, ice therapy, compression and elevation to treat the injury.

• Rest involves restricting your activity for 2 to 3 days after the injury to help the injured part recover without worsening the situation.
• Ice refers to ice therapy in which Gel Ice Packs may be used to reduce swelling and inflammation and aid recovery.
• Compression with an elastic medical bandage also helps reduce or lessen swelling.
• Elevate the injured body part above the level of your heart to reduce pain and swelling.

Most injuries can be treated at home by following the RICE method of resting, applying, compressing the injured area and elevating it.

However, if the injury does not get better after two or three days and the swelling and the pain does not decrease, the injury might be serious and require further medical attention and surgery.