Health blog Category: Knee Pain

Common Lower Extremity Injuries & Prevention

Nov 9^th  2020 

When people think of physical therapy the first thing to come to mind is often ‘injury.” While physical therapy is instrumental in solving injuries and improving functional deficits, it can also be used to prevent injuries specifically in the sport’s world. Read below to hear some common lower extremity injuries in athletes that can be avoided.

ACL/MCL sprain or tear

• Function: these ligaments reside in your knee and prevent the bones from moving too far out of place
• Common reasons for injury: 
  • Twisting and planting the leg
  • Usually occurs in contact or high impact sports (soccer, football, etc)
  • Weak hips and quadriceps muscles lead to poor positioning of the knee and put an athlete at higher risk for injury
• Ways to prevent injury:
  • Physical therapist and athletic trainers can test strength and perform special tests to determine if you are at high risk for these injuries
  • Strengthening hip and isolating certain muscle groups including the quadriceps improves knee positioning
  • Agility drill practice with a PT or ATC can improve athlete agility and reduce injury risk

Meniscus tear

• Function: the meniscus sits between the tibia and femur of your knee joint and provides cushioning to improve joint mobility
• Common reasons for injury:
  • Twisting and planting the leg
  • Usually occurs in contact or with repetitive activities (soccer, running, etc)
  • Weak hips and quadriceps muscles lead to poor positioning of the knee and put an athlete at higher risk for injury
• Ways to prevent injury:
  • Physical therapist and athletic trainers can test strength and perform special tests to determine if you are at high risk for these injuries
  • Strengthening hip and isolating certain muscle groups including the gluteus medius can improve knee positioning
  • Agility drill practice or functional strengthening with a PT or ATC can improve athlete agility and reduce injury risk

ITB Syndrome

• Function: the ITB attaches from your hip muscles and all the way down the outside of your leg and ultimately the knee and patella to improve knee mobility and function of the hip muscles
• Common reasons for injury
  • Weak hip musculature or decreased stretching/mobility 
  • Usually occurs in sports involving repetitive activities (running, jumping, biking, etc)
• Ways to prevent injury:
  • Physical therapist and athletic trainers can test strength and measure flexibility to determine if you are at high risk for these injuries
  • Strengthening and isolating hip muscles can improve function of the ITB
  • Stretching and flexibility training helps to decrease tightness of the ITB and attached muscle groups
  • Functional strengthening with a PT or ATC can improve mobility and reduce injury risk

Ankle Sprain

• Function: these ligaments reside in your ankle and prevent the bones from moving too far out of place
• Common reasons for injury: 
  • Weak ankle musculature and posterior chain strength (glutes/hamstrings/hips)
  • Specific positioning of the ankle that cannot be recovered due to decreased strength
  • Usually occurs in agility tasks including running, cutting, or drills
• Ways to prevent injury: 
  • Physical therapist and athletic trainers can test strength and measure flexibility to determine if you are at high risk for these injuries
  • Strengthening and stabilizing ankle musculature can improve ankle stability and decrease chance for injury
  • Stretching the ankle can also help to improve ankle mobility and reduce injury risk
  • Functional strengthening and agility training with a PT or ATC can improve mobility and reduce injury risk

Physical therapy has many benefits that don’t have to mean getting an injury.