If there is one thing the UK is passionate about it is football. Wherever you go, at any time of year (even off-season!) you are likely to overhear conversations about those Red Devils (Manchester United) or the Gunners (Arsenal). These are included for those who happened here thinking to find information on the top football injuries in the game played across the pond.
Even so, many of the injuries sustained in soccer, as the Yanks call it, are much the same as the injuries experienced in the original form of the game. That distinction being made, let’s look at a few of the most common injuries sustained in football.
Sprains and Strains
Actually, you don’t have to be a pro player to sustain any of the most common sprains and strains treated by therapists such the ATP Physio Clinic. Even daily activities can result in straining one muscle or another, but when it comes to football, these happen to be quite common. They include:
- Sprained ankles.
- Groin strains.
- Strained hamstrings.
Physical therapists find that many of their patients suffering from strains and sprains are not there because they were kicking a ball around the field. Quite often they had ‘simple’ mishaps such as slipping on ice (which we’ve had our fill of this winter) or incorrectly lifting a heavy object off the floor, resulting in a back strain in addition to strained quadriceps or hamstrings.
Causes for These Injuries on the Field
If you are as passionate about the game as 99.999% (a slight exaggeration, of course) of the population of the UK, you have probably witnessed a player going down on the field. This typically happens whilst:
- Running.
- Twisting.
- Jumping and/or landing.
- Reinjuring an old injury.
- Collisions with other players.
- Lack of preparation and toning.
You can clearly see that anyone can sustain these types of injuries if they are out of shape or simply not paying attention to what they are doing. We can also easily reinjure old breaks, strains, and tears if we failed to learn precautionary tactics after being injured previously.
An Assortment of Treatments
Finally, when looking over the most common injuries, you can clearly see that swelling can be a huge factor in the pain you are experiencing. Ice would be a wonderful remedy to reduce the pain resulting from the heat accompanying inflammation. Then when it comes to such things as strains, a hot pack is often prescribed to loosen those taut muscles, which are causing excruciating pain.
Both ice and heat are often used in conjunction with physical therapy to prepare the muscles and tendons to be worked on. Doctors may also prescribe pain medications and anti-inflammatories in addition to physical therapy, but the one thing most doctors will prescribe most of the time is physical therapy. It truly is the best way to bring your body back to a pre-injury state. That said, who are you cheering on this year? (Let us guess, those Red Devils, right?)
