No ACL Hurt: August 2011

Purdue expecting fewer injuries through better sports conditioning

jconline reports:

What happened to high-profile athletes during an 11-month span in 2010 remains one of those hard-to-believe periods in Purdue University athletic history.

Each of the school's marquee sports teams -- football, men's and women's basketball, and volleyball -- were affected by torn anterior cruciate ligament tears, or ACLs.

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The football team was hit the hardest, not just by ACL tears, but by a rash of other injuries. And this past week, another football player was added to the list. Click to continue.

Exciting news for ACL injury prevention

The Orlando Sentinel reports:
Because of the way they're built, girls are up to eight times more likely than boys to suffer an ACL injury to the knee. The SportsMetrics program at Arnold Palmer Hospital for Children is working to lower those odds, and recently got some funding to do so.

This week Kohl's department stores donated $313,000 to Arnold Palmer Hospital for Children's Pediatric Sports Medicine Center. Some of that will go toward preventing anterior cruciate ligament injuries.

As girls hit puberty, their hips widen. The new, angled relationship of hip to knee can make the knee joint less stable. Female hormones also cause ligaments to loosen, making girls more prone to ligament tears, said Dr. Jay Albright, director of pediatric sports medicine at the hospital. Click to continue.

The six-week SportsMetrics training teaches girls jumping strategies that could help them jump higher, land more safely, achieve more balance during play and protect their ACLs. In other sports centers that have used the program, the rate of female ACL injuries drops to just twice as often as boys'. Boys benefit from the training, too, said Albright.

What you need to know about an ACL injury

The Gloucester Times reports:

As Americans make the push towards a more active and healthy lifestyle, the number of exercise-related injuries will continue to rise. Unfortunately, ACL tears are becoming more and more prevalent and are one of the chief reasons patients seek physical therapy care for knee pain.

Given the growing incidence of ACL injury here in the United States, the chance that you or someone you know is having ACL trouble is fairly high.

As with any orthopedic condition or disorder, you'll recover better if you arm yourself with knowledge about the course and progression of the problem. Read on to see some of the most frequently asked questions and answers regarding tears of the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL), one of frou major cruciate ligaments in the knee.

Female Soccer Players at Risk for ACL Injuries

The State Journal reports:

Imagine preparing for a soccer game, lacing up your shoes, grabbing a ball and hitting the field.

"We were at a game at WVU. And, we were warming up really quickly. We didn't have enough time to stretch. I stretched a little bit, but not enough. And, I was running and I just stopped. And, my foot stopped, my knee didn't stop and it just kind of went like that," Victoria Stingo, who plays varsity soccer at her high school, said.

Victoria tore her ACL, an injury, that doctors say is happening more and more in female athletes.

"Knees tend to be turned in more, especially when they jump and when they land. And when the knee is in a twisted and a bent position, you're more vulnerable to injure the ACL," Dr. Peter Alasky, who practices osteopathic medicine at United Hospital Center, said. To read more, click here.

A first hand account of dealing with an ACL injury

Mary Koppy is a sophomore in English writing at MSU, where she is a thrower on the track and field team.

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Great Falls Tribute reports her first hand account of dealing with an ACL injury:

When I tore my ACL in February, I thought the world was ending. Pop culture turns this into the bogeyman of sports injuries. The acronym pops up in hundreds of sports stories each year, and it always seems as if it ends careers.

In fact, the most serious problem a tear in the anterior cruciate ligament poses is the surgery required to fix it. That surgery has vastly improved in the last 60 years as a result of significant medical advances. It now offers the possibility of a full recovery, as well as a greatly diminished chance of complication.

Prior to injuring my knee, I had this vague idea that if your ACL tore, you were done with competitive sports for life. To read more, click here.

Caroline Doty refuses to give up

The Hour reports:

Caroline Doty refuses to give up, refuses to quit, refuses to be beaten by the bands of ligaments and tendons inside her own body which are being so uncooperative and cruel.

More than anything, though, Doty refuses to get down about the setbacks she keeps encountering as she tries to bounce back from the third ACL tear in left knee and the post-injury surgery that followed.

“I’m just thinking positive thoughts,” Doty said last Friday, sitting in front row of the Gampel Pavilion stands, the brace on her left knee unstrapped, a scar, running north and south, clearly visible. “Going into this season, with the group we have, it’s going to be a lot of fun. I’m really excited, especially to be able to be a part of it on the floor is even more exciting. I can’t wait to run out and hear the crowd.”

To read more, click here.

WPS helps players prove their fitness after injuries

ESPN W Reports:

Here's a big reason to keep an eye on the pulse of Women's Professional Soccer: A healthy domestic soccer league has an instant and far-reaching effect on a national team.

WPS has helped players prove their fitness after injuries. Midfielder Megan Rapinoe, one of the breakout stars of the World Cup, came back strong in WPS after suffering ACL injuries as she finished her career at Portland.

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To read more, click here.

Sara Keane is back on top after a torn ACL

The Daily Mail reports:

Sara Keane loved watching her WVU women's soccer team play at Dick Dlesk Soccer Stadium the past two seasons.

She just wasn't crazy about her vantage point.

A torn ACL suffered in April of her senior year in high school in Mount Laurel, N.J., kept the promising goalkeeper candidate on the bench her first two years in the program.

"As much as I love watching our team play, I'd much rather be involved in it," said Keane, whose Mountaineers beat Central Michigan, 2-1, behind two Blake Miller goals in a home exhibition match Saturday night. To read more, click here.

An incredible story of overcoming injury

Check out this article about Kellie Welch, a sophomore at the University of Washington. She's come back from tearing her ACL three times to play Division I soccer!

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From the article:

Many Division I college athletes face the devastating injury known as tearing their ACL. UW women's soccer player Kellie Welch has withstood tearing her ACL not once, not twice, but three different times within the span of a few short years. Now in her third year at UW, as a sophomore eligibility wise, she is ready to finally hit the field with her team this fall and show Husky nation her resilience and drive to come back from multiple similar injuries.

She, like many other student-athletes who start playing their sport at a young age, started playing soccer when she was around five. But, before she even started playing, she was constantly around soccer through her family.

"My brother, Matt, is two years older than me and he did soccer and I just wanted to do everything he did. He played soccer at the time and my dad was the coach, so I'd go out and watch his practices. If they needed someone, I'd go get balls for them."

The next year, she played recreational soccer, which she continued for two years before joining a club she was a part of up until her junior year. Due to several players graduating from the team, she joined another club team for just her senior year. Click here, to read the rest.

Stay in the game.

Injuring your ACL stinks, but you’re in good company. Everyday another 548 people suffer too. Are you injured? Have you been injured? I’d love to hear your story. Email me at Aspaeris@gmail.com and we’ll feature you on our blog!

No Pain, No Gain? WRONG!

Ever hear the old slogan, “no pain, no gain”? Following this advice blindly can lead an athlete into danger. No, you shouldn’t let every scrape or muscle ache keep you out of the game, but pain, real pain should be a red light.

Last week I mentioned how you shouldn’t ignore pain, because pain is your body telling you that something is wrong.

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How can you tell the difference between pain and soreness?

Pain is sudden, sharp, acute, and has staying power. Soreness is usually a dull ache that will subside quickly.

Pain means it’s time to stop. You might not be injured yet, but you’re on your way. Listen to your body’s signals and take a break. You may have tweaked or strained a muscle or it could be something more. The most important thing to remember is that if the pain persists for more than 48 hours, it’s time to head to the doctor.

Have you heard of the R.I.C.E method (source)?

· Rest

· Ice

· Compress

· Elevate

This in combination with what your doctor prescribes will help you into a quick recovery.

While you’re on the mend, don’t forget about cross-training. While your sport may have you doing a lot of running, pivoting, or jumping, there are other ways to stay in great cardio shape while you’re on the sidelines.

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Often stationary bicycling, elliptical training, and swimming can be good substitutes for high impact sports (source). Obviously, nothing seems as good as your sport, but cross training will get you back in action faster after recovery.

Stay in the game.

5 ways to prevent sports injuries

Your sports require you to have strength and skill to excel in the game. Not only do you need to hone your technique, but you also need to be proactive about injury prevention to guarantee you’ll have the opportunity to compete. Below we’ve listed five great ways athletes can prevent sports related injuries. This list is by no means exhaustive, but it’s a great place to start.

1. Condition – To stack the odds in your favor, it’s important to stay in shape year round. If your body is constantly in top form, you’re muscles are more likely to react in sync and your body move properly. Your sport requires your muscles to be able to pivot and move at a moment’s notice. Conditioning prepares your body. (Source http://www.stopsportsinjuries.org/sports-injury-prevention.aspx)

2. Hydrate – If your body does not take in the proper amount of water in relationship to your exertion, you run the risk of dehydration. Not to mention, drinking more water can actually improve your performance as well as prevent injury. Renee Melton, MS, RD, LD, director of nutrition for Sensei, a developer of online and mobile weight loss and nutrition programs states, “If you start out dehydrated, you won’t get a good workout. You’ll get dizzy, lethargic, your muscles won’t work as well, you won’t feel as sharp mentally, and you’ll get cramps sooner.” (source: http://www.webmd.com/fitness-exercise/features/water-for-exercise-fitness?page=2)

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3. Ice – Proper recovery after exercise is just as important to injury prevention as what you do before exercise. Icing sore or heavily worked muscles will help speed recovery and reduce inflammations so you can get back out there and play the game. (source: http://sweatscience.com/ice-baths-for-recovery-15-minutes-at-10-c/)

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4. Don’t ignore pain – If your muscles and joints are sore, that’s one thing, but if you are in real pain, don’t play through. Pain is your body telling you that something is wrong. A twinged muscle can heal in a couple of days, but ignoring that twinged muscle could lead to a pull or a tear and derail a season.

5. Wear technical compression gear – Aspaeris designed their shorts specifically to help the female athlete prevent ACL injuries and tears by guiding the wearing into proper posture. It is also a compression short that will help your muscle recovery post exercise. (source: aspaerispivotshorts.com)

Stay in the game.

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