More than 10 million sports injuries occur each year, and most are due to either traumatic injury or overuse of muscles or joints. In many cases, sports injuries can be prevented with proper conditioning and training, wearing appropriate protective gear, and using proper equipment. About 95 percent of all sports injuries are due to minor trauma involving soft tissue injuries, or injuries affecting your muscles, ligaments, and tendons. Many of these injuries occur during participation in organized sports, competitions, training sessions, or organized fitness activities. There are basically two types of sports injuries: acute traumatic injury and overuse or chronic injury. In acute traumatic injury situations, an injury usually involves a single blow from a single application of force and can include injuries such as a fracture, bruise, strain, sprain, or abrasion. Chronic or overuse injuries are those that are sustained over a period of time or recur often. They’re most likely the result of repetitive training such as running, overhand throwing, or serving a ball in tennis. These injuries can include stress fractures, or tiny cracks in the bone’s surface, tendinitis (ten-dihn-EYE-this), and bursitis (bur-SYE-this). Tendinitis is the result of small tears (tehrz) in the tendon fibers, while bursitis is an inflammation in the small fluid-filled sacs in your shoulder, elbow, or knee. If left untreated, a chronic injury may become worse over time. Immediate treatment for almost all acute athletic injuries is rest, ice, compression, and elevation. If you sustain prolonged symptoms, you may want to consult a physician.
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