With the school year right around the corner, your student-athlete is probably in conditioning season, ready to kick off for the fall sports season!
While no one can deny the fun of playing sports and its obvious health benefits, participating in high-speed and intense activities could pose underlying risks of injuries, even if you are already being careful.
Here are a few common injuries your student-athlete may face during the season.
Ankle Sprain
An ankle sprain is an injury that happens when ankles twist in an unnormal way. The ligaments of ankles are torn or stretched during such movements, causing pain, swelling and/or internal bleeding.
There are several different grades of ankle sprain based on the severity of this injury. In general, within the first 48 to 72 hours, you should minimize movements involving the sprained ankle, apply ice for 20 minutes a few times a day, use a compressed wrap to prevent swelling, and elevate the ankle if possible.
Depending on the seriousness of the injury, you should see a medical professional immediately if the condition isn't improving after performing above treatments.
Groin Strain
Sprinting or suddenly changing direction during rapid movements of the leg can tear the inner thigh muscles. If your thigh feels a sudden pain while participating in high-tension sports, you've probably got groin strain.
Similar to an ankle sprain, a groin strain could be treated by applying ice therapy and compression on the strain to ease the pain and minimize internal bleeding.
Keep in mind that returning to the action right away without proper treatment could make the injury worse.
Shin Splints
Shin splints, a common injury among runners, is the injury on the front of the lower leg. Running on toes, running on hard surfaces, or increasing the running distance suddenly all contributes to this injury. There are several other factors that could increase the risk of shin splints such as over-pronation, over-supination, insufficient footwear, and poor flexibility.
Treating shin splints is similar to other common sports injuries. The PRICE principles (Protection, Rest, Ice, Compression, Elevation) are good measurements to start with. It is also very important to develop a rehabilitation program with exercises to recover the muscles to full functions.
Bone Fractures
A bone fracture happens when the force applied on the bone is stronger than the bone itself. Fractures could be serious or non-life-threatening depending on the bone location and patient's age.
Broken bones happen quite often in children, however, are usually less serious. Older people also have bone fractures more easily because their bones weaken over time.
It's usually pretty easy to identify a broken bone such as noticing a bruising over a bone, abnormal bone structure, a painful sensation when pressing the broken bone areas, as well as loss of function in the suspecting areas

If your student athlete is faced with a non-life-threatening injury while out on the field, visit AFC Urgent Care South Plainfield.  Our experienced medical professionals at AFC Urgent Care South Plainfield treat a variety of common sports injuries such as sprains, strains, fractures, and more.
At AFC Urgent Care South Plainfield, we also administer walk-in sports physicals to ensure that your child is healthy and not at risk for injury.
Our comprehensive sports physicals include examination of:

• Height
• Weight
• Eyes
• Ears
• Nose
• Mouth
• Joint Flexibility

If you have a family member or friend suffering from a sports injury, or in need of a sports physical, bring them to our urgent care center today to receive the best medical treatment at an affordable cost!
For more information, please contact us at 908-222-3500.