Understanding Overuse Injuries: Controlling the Load
Participation in sports is a fundamental aspect of a young athlete's physical and social development.
Athletics provides a great opportunity for the young athlete to develop both upper and lower body strength, power and endurance in track and field events. However, we know sometimes our young athletes' bodies are unable to keep up with the demand of training and competing whilst juggling multiple sports during the summer season.
This unfortunately can result in injury… an overuse injury.
Rather than rolling your ankle, straining a muscle; when we work our bodies too much too quickly this can cause those frustrating, niggling overuse injuries.
Here are two overuse injuries to keep an eye out for this athletics season.
Bone Stress Injury:
Bone Stress Injuries (BSI) or stress fractures are small fractures in the bone that result from repetitive stress on the skeletal system. Sports involving running and jumping are associated with a higher incidence of BSI such as Little Athletics. This can occur due to the combination of excessive training, improper biomechanics, and inadequate recovery. Common sites for stress fractures include the shin (tibia) and metatarsals with incidence being between 3-20% in young athletes. For more information to shin pain read our blog HERE.
Physiotherapy plays a vital role in the management of stress fractures. Initial periods of de-loading and relative rest is crucial to allow the bone to heal. Physiotherapists can prescribe devices to help de-load the BSI and implement rehabilitation exercises focusing on strengthening the muscles around the affected area, improving biomechanics, and gradually reintroducing weight-bearing activities.
Additionally, Physiotherapy can involve gait analysis and correction of strength and conditioning programing and training errors can contribute to preventing future BSI injuries.
Overuse Knee Injuries:
Some knee injuries that are well known in causing knee pain in young athletes include Osgood Schlatter and Sinding Larsen Johansson. Please read our blog HERE for that.
However, this blog will be unpacking another common overuse injury in young athletes.
Patella tendinopathy, commonly known as jumper's knee, is an overuse injury that affects the patellar tendon, connecting the quadricep and patella to the shinbone. Young athletes involved in activities that require frequent jumping or high loads of running have increased risk of tendon pain (such as Little Athletics).
Tendons have a very important role to play in producing and absorbing the amount of force we create and responding to the load we place on them.
Therefore, Physiotherapy interventions for patellar tendinopathy are vital in reducing the amount of load placed through the patella tendon.
Initial periods of de-loading and relative rest is crucial to allow the tendon to calm down. Then rehabilitation programming involving various forms of strengthening exercises for the quadriceps and surrounding musculature play an important part of preparing the patella tendon for the load it is required to handle.
Additionally, Physiotherapy can also involve gait analysis and correction of strength and conditioning programing and training errors.
Overuse injuries are frustrating and difficult injuries to observe and identify. However, early understanding and treatment of overuse injuries in young athletes is essential for them to optimise their training and competitive season.
Evidence-based physiotherapy interventions, including exercise rehabilitation, education on injury prevention and future planning and programming of training can be effective ways of preventing overuse injuries.
Feel like you have an overuse injury or are developing one? We have Sports & Exercise Physiotherapists ready to help!
Call ☎️ 9873 2770 to book an appointment.
Book online : https://bookings.nookal.com/bookings/location/39XKS