Basketball, swimming, and wrestling; the most common winter sports bring on a myriad of different sports injuries to the athletes that participate in them.

The ankle is the most common musculoskeletal injury that occurs in athletics with basketball leading the way. This injury is usually an outside or lateral ankle sprain commonly caused by cutting or coming down from a jump and landing on someone else’s foot. The knee is also commonly sprained in basketball due to the high degree of cutting as well as coming down awkwardly on the leg.

The most common areas of sports injury in the swimmer are the shoulders, the knee, and the spine. Unlike basketball, the majority of injuries in the swimmer are due to overuse. The shoulder goes through a wide range of motion with every stroke which can cause instability of the shoulder and lead to rotator cuff tendinitis and injury to the labrum. Knee injuries are common in breaststrokers because of the amount of force that is generated on the inside of the knee with this particular stroke. The spine is also commonly injured due to the degree of extension (backward bending) the back has to go through while swimming. This can cause disk injuries and sometimes lead to a stress fracture in the spine.  Sprains and strains can also occur, but these usually calm down fairly quickly.

The most common injuries to wrestlers are sprains and strains to the shoulder, elbow, knee, and neck because these joints are pushed and stretched beyond their normal range of motion. There is also a high number of shoulder and elbow dislocations suffered each year in wrestling. 

The Physical Therapists at Snyder Physical Therapy & Sports Rehabilitation are leaders in the Lincoln, NE, community in returning athletes to the game following a sports injury. If you have suffered an injury while playing sports or while competing in LIFE, contact us at (402) 489-1999 to see if we can help you on your road to recovery. You can also visit our website.