Refer to the information below as well as your own knowledge to answer the question.
The information relates to the treatment of a sports injury.
A player is tackled in a football game and feels pain in their shoulder. During the assessment of the injury, the sports trainer identifies that the player has sustained a shoulder dislocation. The coach instructs the player to apply cold compression, immobilise their shoulder and completely rest for the next four weeks so that they can play in the grand final.
Evaluate the coach’s advice and propose a suitable rehabilitation program for the football player. (12 marks)
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Evaluation Statement (coach’s advice)
- The coach’s advice to immobilise the shoulder and completely rest for four weeks is inappropriate, as both strategies could negatively affect the player’s recovery and ability to perform successfully in the grand final.
Immobilising the Shoulder
- Immobilising the shoulder for four weeks would dramatically decrease range of motion, increase joint stiffness and could result in muscle atrophy.
- While immobilisation may initially protect the injured shoulder, prolonged immobilisation could negatively affect recovery.
- As a result, the player may have reduced shoulder function when returning to play, increasing the risk of re-injury and restricting performance.
Complete Rest
- Completely resting for four weeks would also negatively affect the player’s total body fitness, particularly the cardiorespiratory endurance required for football.
- The player’s VO₂ max, haemoglobin levels and lactate threshold could decrease, resulting in increased fatigue.
- This would reduce the player’s ability to meet the demands of the match and could cause skills such as tackling technique to deteriorate as the match progresses.
Final Evaluation
- Overall, the coach’s advice is inappropriate because the negative effects on shoulder function and physical fitness outweigh the benefits of prolonged rest and immobilisation.
Proposed rehabilitation
- Progressive mobilisation – gradually increasing range of motion for the injured shoulder.
- Graduated exercise – includes stretching the injured shoulder allowing for increased muscle length and elasticity. Conditioning ensures that the injured shoulder has maintained its strength so that muscle atrophy doesn’t occur. Total body fitness that is sport specific should be maintained to avoid reversibility.
- Training – ensuring that the athlete is at appropriate sport-specific fitness capacity to compete in the grand final. This can be achieved by playing in modified game situations during training sessions or playing in a reserve game as well as ensuring that the athlete’s timing, speed and coordination are all at pre-injury state.
- Use of heat and cold – cold can assist in the reduction of inflammation as required.
Show Worked Solution
Evaluation Statement (coach’s advice)
- The coach’s advice to immobilise the shoulder and completely rest for four weeks is inappropriate, as both strategies could negatively affect the player’s recovery and ability to perform successfully in the grand final.
Immobilising the Shoulder
- Immobilising the shoulder for four weeks would dramatically decrease range of motion, increase joint stiffness and could result in muscle atrophy.
- While immobilisation may initially protect the injured shoulder, prolonged immobilisation could negatively affect recovery.
- As a result, the player may have reduced shoulder function when returning to play, increasing the risk of re-injury and restricting performance.
Complete Rest
- Completely resting for four weeks would also negatively affect the player’s total body fitness, particularly the cardiorespiratory endurance required for football.
- The player’s VO₂ max, haemoglobin levels and lactate threshold could decrease, resulting in increased fatigue.
- This would reduce the player’s ability to meet the demands of the match and could cause skills such as tackling technique to deteriorate as the match progresses.
Final Evaluation
- Overall, the coach’s advice is inappropriate because the negative effects on shoulder function and physical fitness outweigh the benefits of prolonged rest and immobilisation.
Proposed rehabilitation
- Progressive mobilisation – gradually increasing range of motion for the injured shoulder.
- Graduated exercise – includes stretching the injured shoulder allowing for increased muscle length and elasticity. Conditioning ensures that the injured shoulder has maintained its strength so that muscle atrophy doesn’t occur. Total body fitness that is sport specific should be maintained to avoid reversibility.
- Training – ensuring that the athlete is at appropriate sport-specific fitness capacity to compete in the grand final. This can be achieved by playing in modified game situations during training sessions or playing in a reserve game as well as ensuring that the athlete’s timing, speed and coordination are all at pre-injury state.
- Use of heat and cold – cold can assist in the reduction of inflammation as required.