In real sense, the most common joint and bone injury is relative to the type of activities a person undergoes every day. What might be a common injury for one person might not be common to another, this is because, and the type of injury we all are prone to is greatly dependent on our daily activities. An athlete is prone to ankle injury than a table tennis player who is more prone to wrist injury. Therefore we have looked into most of these injuries and took our time to talk more on the ones that are very common in our daily activities.
What is an injury?
Many people have varieties of definition for injury and a cerebral look into all these definitions proves them to be correct. There might not be a standard definition but the issue underlying it is always the same. Therefore injury can be said to be an unfortunate occurrence that keeps the affected thing grounded or reduce the productivity of its subject.
What are the joints?
In simple term, a joint is a part of the skeletal system where two or more bones meet and are joined together by muscles, tendons and so on. They are formed to allow a special type of movements specific to each of the joints
What are joint injuries?
These are wounds that happen to the bones, ligaments, tendons, cartilage or any other components that make up the joint. When this unfortunate incidence occurs, they can be really annoying, nagging and hurtful. They are so hurtful that they keep us out of our daily activities. There was a time I hurt my knee joint as a kid, I can still remember the pain I went through, I could not walk very well and when I tried to force myself to take a little walk, the pain will not allow me.
Then after my experience as a kid, I do have empathy for others when I see them going through situations like this. It hurts me so much and I do wish I can keep every one from ever getting wounded in any respect whatsoever it may be. The truth is, it might not be really possible to keep everyone from hurting some of their joints/bones, accidents are bound to happen and sure it is part of those things we have little or no power over, nevertheless, a good knowledge about these injuries will give us the right respect to combat the injury and get ourselves back to the best position as soon as possible. This is what this article is all about and I am sure you definitely will be educated after you calmly peruse this content here.
Common Joint Injuries
For this article, I am going to be considering 4 major common injuries that are peculiar to all joints in the body system:
1) Spain
2) Strain
3) Fracture
4) Dislocation
Sprain
This occurs when there is a stretch or tears in the ligament, the fibrous bands of connective tissue that joins the end of one bone with another. A sprain can occur when the joints are over-stretched i.e taken beyond its functional range. This causes fatigue to the muscle which subsequently leads to sprain. A sprain can happen to any joints in the body but it is most common to ankle and wrist joint.
A sprain can be categorized into three: Mild (Grade 1), moderate (Grade 2) and severe (Grade 3). A severe sprain produces the most pain. This is because there is complete ligament being torn completely or getting separated from the bone. When it’s separated from the bone, it results in complete non-functionality of the joint.
A moderate sprain on the other hand partially tears the ligament thereby producing joints instability and some swelling. While in a mild sprain, the ligament is only stretched and there is no loosening of the joints.
Strain
Though most people often confuse strain with a sprain, the truth is, the two are not the same. A strain is an injury of muscle and or tendon. It occurs when the muscle and or the tendon are overstretched beyond which as a result cause a partial or total tear of the tendon or the ligament Tendons are fibrous cords of tissue that attach muscles to bone.
Just like a sprain, strain can also be categorized into three: Severe strain, the muscle and/or the tendon is partially or completely ruptured often rendering the victim incapacitated. In a moderate strain, the muscle and or the tendon is overstretched and slightly torn and in mild strain, the muscle is only stretched or pulled slightly.
The symptoms for strain include pain, muscle spasm, muscle weakness, swelling, inflammation, and cramping.
Fracture
Fracture in simple terms is the complete or partial break in the bone. This normally happens in a severe car accident or any other type of accident. It can be from a brutal fall or from sporting activities. Furthermore, low bone density can be a cause of the fracture.
What is low bone density?
Low bone density is a condition where the bone is not strong enough and breaks easily under minimum stress. There are several factors that weaken the bone; we have osteoporosis: the type of disease that weakens the bone. Deficiency in calcium and vitamin D can also be a factor.
What are the symptoms of a fracture?
There are varieties of symptoms that come along with fracture, few of them include: severe pain, inability to move the affected body part, the affected part looks deform, numbness and tingling, swelling and so on
A fracture can be categorized into two which are a simple and compound fracture. The two are quite similar but the difference is, for compound fracture, the broken bone(s) breaks and equally punctures the flesh.
Treatment
Fractures cannot be handled alone, it is very essential to visit the physician immediately after the accident. The affected person might find it difficult or unable to move the affected part, therefore he/she must seek help from others so as to effectively transport him/her to the physician.
Furthermore, regular body check-up can prevent fracture to a certain level by going for bone mass measurement. Osteoporosis can be detected early too through medical check-up.
Dislocation
This is mainly an injury of the joint. A joint is a place where two or more bones meet, dislocation can then be said to be a situation of the joint where the ends of the bones are forced from their normal positions. Areas that can be dislocated on the body are knees, shoulders, hips, elbows, and jaw.
Dislocation of bones can be very painful and can render the victim immobile. In fact, it is very difficult to differentiate between dislocation and fracture by merely looking at the victim, both sorts of have the same symptoms. Therefore it is important to take the victim to a doctor as soon as the incidence happened.
Dislocation can also be viewed in two types: simple dislocation and complicated dislocation. A complicated dislocation occurs when certain issues follow the dislocation of joints like tearing of the muscles, ligaments, and tendons that reinforce the injured joint; damage of blood tissue around the joint.
Some dislocation can be handled in a simple way while the complicated ones might require surgery to effectively treat the affected person.
What is the most common Injured joint?
Several people ask me this question over and over again, which joint is most susceptible to injury. The truth is, it varies from one person to another depending on the types of activities we engaged in every day. For example, a professional basketball player is liable to sustaining an ankle and wrist injury more than any other joints. A tennis player is more susceptible to a wrist injury while an athlete is quite more susceptible to an ankle injury. Therefore, there might not be a straight answer but every joint or bone injury is quite very painful.
How to Treat/prevent joint/bone injuries
We have been able to establish how sprain occurs and how much we do not want this unfortunate incidence to happen to us. The truth is, having the right knowledge can guide us rightly in preventing this incidence. Nevertheless, even if we are still faced with this issue, there are a lot of routes we can take to get us back to our perfect health.
Right Exercise
Importance of exercise cannot be over-emphasized; this is because exercise strengthens the muscle, ligaments, cartilage and every other joints component. When they are strengthened, it makes them withstand more stress and they will not break or tear easily. Therefore, regular exercise keeps our body fit and withstand some harsh condition they won’t be able to withstand a situation where we didn’t exercise them.
Exercise can also be instrumental in our recovery if we already sustain the injury. It is very wrong to just sit down in one place, we have to stand and try to exercise the affected area with caution though and with the right advise from our physiotherapist and proper external support.
External support
From its name, external support act as an added support to the body preventing the body from any circumstances that may be injurious to the body. There are a lot of supports that keeps the body away from such injury and also gives a boost in recovery when we sustain any of the injuries.
Ankle Brace
An ankle brace holds the ankle in position, preventing it from moving or twisting to allow it heals up and prevent further injury. The ankle brace is not worn to heal a sprained ankle alone; it is also used to serve as a safety measure against sustaining such injury. Therefore, you might not need to wait till you twist your bone before getting the best ankle brace; you can also get it to serve as safety/prevention measure against ankle sprain or any other joint injury.
Back/Lumbar Brace
The best back brace is very expedient for everybody as well; they are worn whenever we want to engage in strenuous activities which might involve carrying something heavy. This brace keeps our back in the right position to prevent any condition that might result in a back injury. This serves as prevention by holding our back in place thereby preventing any unnecessary twist or turns that may pose a serious and ridiculous threat to the back.
Wrist Brace
Getting the Best Wrist Brace is very expedient to the healing process of the sprained wrist or any other injury sustained by the wrist. Wrist brace typically compresses and hold the wrist in the desired position to help boost the healing process, avoid further injuries and also serve as a prevention mechanism against sustaining an injury.
Crutches
This is used when the injury has occurred and it’s so severe that it impairs our movement. When such happen, crutches can serve as added support to allow us to move from one place to another without exerting any unnecessary pressure on the affected joint. Crutches are mostly used when the affected joint is the ankle, knee cap or any other place around the hips towards the leg.
Neck Brace
Neck region is not excluded from joint injuries and these situations can happen to the neck joint as well. The neck brace is also external support specifically made for the neck. It keeps the neck in its rightful position, disallows from abnormal movement until the recovery process is complete.
Medical Treatment
The best thing to do when any of the above incidences occur is to see your doctor immediately. I have seen several situations where people decide to manage the situation thinking it’s just a mild situation. The truth is, a simple condition can result in something complex if the right treatment is not given at the right time. Medical treatment cannot be underrated and must be given the first priority when we find ourselves in these unfortunate situations.
In conclusion, Injuries are bound to happen, because accidents that cause them can occur anytime. When they occur, there is no need to panic; I can assure you that you will definitely be fine. The first thing is to be bold and courageous. You won’t be the first, therefore, you need to be calm to make sane and right decisions depending on the situation you find yourself.
Furthermore, you have to be optimistic and follow the directive of your doctor. This will enhance the healing and get you back to your best position as soon as possible.