Cartilage Tear Injury - Essay Example

In football and rugby, traumatic injuries are the major contributors while in basketball, lawn tennis, hockey, and badminton sudden stopping and twisting tops the list. However, no sport is limited to a single cause.SymptomsThe major symptoms include mild to severe pain, swelling of the knee joint, audible click or pop in the knee, and at times knee lock occurs. The magnitude and the number of symptoms observed in a casualty are not fixed (Engebretsen & Bahr 2011). In many cases, they vary depending on the severity of the injury.

First aidIn case of a cartilage tear, the patient is first given a physiotherapy treatment to lessen the pain and inflammation or swelling of the joint. This involves the application of ice packs at an interval of 20 minutes hourly. For severe cases, the patient is hospitalized immediately (Engebretsen & Bahr 2011).Playing statusReturning to the field to play once again may be immediate depending on how fast the knee settles down, swelling and pain disappear. Although in complicated cases, this will be indefinite.

This is because it is subject to the type of treatment given and the rehabilitation period based on the doctor’s opinion (Engebretsen & Bahr 2011).PreventionIn sports, tearing of cartilage is not an injury that can be easily prevented. However, there are measures that can be employed to minimize the frequencies of such occurrences. In the field, players in any particular sport should avoid playing or training in uneven or grounds, do warm-up activities before engaging in any intense physical sport and should have a knee strap to aid in restriction of joint rotation but permits knee movement.

Also performing exercises that develop the quadriceps and hamstring muscles can be handy in preventing cartilage tear (Sohn & Toth 2008).ReferencesSohn, D. H & Toth, A. P (2008). Meniscus Transplantation: Current concepts. Journal of Knee Surgery 21 (2): 163-72.Engebretsen, L. & Bahr, R. (2011). Sports Injury Prevention. New Delhi: John Wiley & Sons.