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Acute Injuries: What They Are And How To Avoid Them

By: Dane Fletcher

The most immediate treatment for all acute sport injuries is rest, ice, compression and elevation (RICE). The reason for rest immediately is to try to reduce the probability of a hemorrhage, further injury and swelling. Ice will cause dermal vascular constriction and helps to keep the swelling down, but also reduces pain. Compression and elevation also help keep the swelling to a minimum.

Whatever part is injured you should first grab the ice bag, either a chemically cooled one, or one with crushed ice so that it will conform better to the bodies contours, you should then place the bag on a towel and the bag and towel should be applied to the injury all while elevating the injury if applicable and then immediately wrapped with an elastic bandage keeping it loose enough for blood flow. After 10 minutes you should remove the ice bag and keep the injury elevated and then in an additional 10 minutes you can re-apply the ice. You can continue to do this alternation every 60 to 90 minutes for the first 24 hours post injury.

Here are the interesting facts you should read about where this form of immediate treatment comes from, the pathology if you will.

The ice application provides immediate cold relief which reduces swelling by constricting your vascular system and the capillaries permeability. It also reduces the pain because it slows down the impulse transmission from the pain receptors. This also eliminates the spasms between muscles and tendon receptors to the muscles. Additionally, it will reduced the destruction of tissue by decreasing the cellular metabolism. Over application can result in vasodialation, more swelling, more pain and eventually the tissue destruction.

In most injuries it is safe to say that your pain can be reduced drastically by simply immobilizing the injury correctly. The elastic sports bandage reduces stress, prevents you from moving in a painful way and will help control the swelling that happens when the tissues are damaged. The inflatable splints are more recommended for the comfort, easy adjustability and removal to a leg or an arm. Being very careful of how tightly the wrap is put on is key because you do not want to get it so tight you are restricting blood flow.

Heat is never advised to treat an injury. The only thing heat should be used for is post injury for tension and relaxation.

Additionally, adding creams will be adding insult to injury if done improperly. If you chose to add a cream, you need not rub it in because it could further complicate things by causing more hemorrhaging, blood clotting and broken bone fragments left in muscle.

Article Source: http://www.bluearticles.com


Dane Fletcher is the world-wide authority on bodybuilding and steroids. He has coached countless athletes all over the world. To read more of his work, please visit either http://www.BodybuildingToday.com or http://www.SteroidsToday.com

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