COMMON BASKETBALL INJURIES EXPLAINED

Common Basketball Injuries Explained

Foot and Ankle Injuries:
The physical strain and the repetition that is involved up and down a basketball court commonly contributes to over use injuries in the feet and ankles.
Among these are Plantar Fascitis, and Ankle Sprains 

The foot and ankle in the human body work together to provide balance, stability, movement, and propulsion.
This complex anatomy consists of:
• 26 bones
• 33 joints
• Muscles
• Tendons
• Ligaments
• Blood vessels, nerves, and soft tissue

The most common points effected in this region are soft tissue, muscles and ligaments so we will focus on those.
Plantar Fascitis:
The plantar fascia ligament is overstretched or partially torn causing inflammation and pain. Joakim Noah is a recent NBA example of this injury. Typically requires RICE which is the acronym for rest, ice,compression and elevation.

Ankle sprains are typically a strain of the  talo-fibular ligament and the calcaneo-fibular ligament. The are also a overuse injury but can also be caused by torsion or trauma.

Knee and thigh injuries:
​Thigh bruises are fairly common typically caused by trauma of inadvertent elbow or knee to the thigh region.

 Patellofemoral pain syndrome -- pain felt behind the kneecap (Patella) at the point it meets the thigh (Femur) This is typically a biomechanical issue caused by the physical stresses of playing basketball with potential degradation of cartilage contributing. This also typically requires RICE (the acronym not the food).

Patella fracture- also known as a fractured knee cap this is when you have some form of fracture in the patella.

ACL tear- Anterior Crucial Ligament is the primary stabilizing ligament in the knee and one of the more severe potential knee injuries. 
MCL tear- can be a grade 1,2 or 3 injury and is typically a 6-8 week recovery. The MCL is the medial cruciall ligament.

PCL tear- least severe and stands for pateller crucial ligament

Types of ligament strains:
Grade 1 is a hyperextsion with inflammation but no tearing
Grade 2 is a partial ligament tear
Grade 3 is a full tear of ligament

I hope this guide helped to clear up some of the more common basketball injuries and what they are.