I see a significant number of injuries from soccer in my
office. Most of them involve the lower
extremities. They may be from a
traumatic injury like a kick to the leg or a twist to the knee, or may result
from overuse. Sprains of joints and
strains of muscles and tendons are the most common injuries, but cartilage
tears, fractures and contusions do occur.
Shin splints, patella tendinitis and Achilles tendinitis are the most
common overuse injuries. In these cases,
there is no one event that causes the pain.
Instead, the pain builds up over time.
I also see several stress fractures every year. These occur when the bone becomes weak from
overuse. It’s often pretty tough to
distinguish between soft tissue injuries and injury to the bone, so if leg pain
does not improve after a few days of rest, you should consult your physician.
Treating soccer injuries can be tricky. I strive to limit the time lost from training
while ensuring a safe return to play.
For most acute injuries, a short period of rest with ice and elevation
will do the trick. For some of the
longer term injuries, especially overuse injuries, relative rest is
possible. This means that the athlete
can continue to do some modified training while avoiding painful
activities. For example, I will often
have players work on drills, but avoid scrimmaging. Sometimes I have to put them on a bike or in
the pool to maintain cardiovascular stamina while avoiding a lot of
weightbearing on an injured leg. Rarely
are players completely restricted from activity for a long-term basis.
Prevention of soccer injuries often involves just using
common sense. Use well-fitting cleats
and shin guards. Watch out for mobile
goals that can fall on players. Remember
to hydrate adequately. Maintain proper
fitness—we know that athletes who are stronger and more prepared physically
have lower risk of injury. If an injury
does occur, returning to play after a player is healed needs to be gradual,
progressing through aerobic conditioning, strength training, and then agility
training.
Staying fit for the field is easy with proper preparation,
but injuries do occur. Playing through
pain is often not the answer. Never
hesitate to consult your physician if you are unsure.
