Sports injuries

Osteopathy for Sports injuries

Whether you are an athlete performing at an elite level or someone who partakes in sports recreationally, injuries can and will occur. Sports often result in common injuries that in many cases are preventable. The key to ensuring that a full recovery is achieved and to lessen the probability of future injury is to get a thorough understanding of the individual patient's lifestyle and to restore the body's natural alignment.

Any movement of the body will require some part of body to move outside its physiological range and this will place increased stress on that particular area, which can lead to injury. Examples of this can be seen in everyday sporting activities such as;

• A football player twisting their knee or ankle
• A tennis player getting tennis elbow from placing repeated stress on the elbow joint
• A golfer having lower back pain from poor technique and posture

Identifying the damaged structure is an important part of the treatment plan and recovery process, but osteopathy also focuses on other areas of the body to ensure that they are all functioning optimally. This will help reduce the chances of the same injury recurring, while also enhancing the body's resilience to future injuries.

As an example, when a football player presents with a knee injury, an osteopathic treatment will focus on the knee joint, the associated muscles, nerves, tendons and ligaments. It will also address the functioning of other joints such as the ankle, hip and lower back to ensure that they are not contributing to increased stress on the knee joint.