A PRO-ACTIVE 2007 FOR YOUR CLUB

The Sports Injury Clinic gives you tips and offers services that can help your club be pro-active in preparation on the training track and ultimately lead to improved performance on the field.

Ground conditions affected by the drought are just one of the challenges we face during 2007 in getting your players up to peak condition.

However, with The Sports Injury Clinic’s AFL approved programs and player management systems, we can implement effective strategies for your club in a structured and pro-active way, 7 days a week.

Some of the concerns coaches consistently raise with us include injury reoccurrence, non structured training nights and rehabilitation programs.

The Sports Injury Clinic can address all these issues positively, working within your current club infrastructure.

What can we do for your club?

Assistance 24 hours a day

Your club will have access to an on-call physiotherapist who will give immediate assistance for players coaches and trainers 24 hours a day. Just call 1800 351 421 for on-the-spot advice.

Exercise Physiology

The Sports Injury Clinic’s qualified Exercise Physiologists can come to your club and conduct specialist training sessions. They can also assist with structuring your training year based on prior knowledge of football injury and best outcomes. Exercise physiology sessions are also available on-line for your club during training and specialist injury sessions. (i.e. Hamstrings, groins, quads, knee/ankle injury.)

Monday Night Injury Clinic

The Sports Injury Clinic holds a regular Monday night injury clinic between 6pm and 8pm, no appointment is required. Our Physiotherapist will assess, treat and direct a rehabilitation program for your players immediately as well as an active management plant to avoid spending more time than is necessary the sidelines. On the day of assessment our physiotherapist will contact and report to the injured players coach or manager by phone or email to report findings and outcomes. You will also have immediate access to Sports Medicine Doctors for assessment and investigations if required. A monday night injury clinic session is fully covered by your private health fund with no gap to you, or in the event you don't have private health insurance the cost is $20.

Injury Updates

You will receive 20 Injury Updates per year which will give you facts and information regarding certain injuries for use by coaches and players.

BACKS FOR LIFE

Some of the facts:

• Back pain is unfortunate and 80% of the population suffer back pain at some stage of their life. A statistic that can be changed.
• Back pain may often reoccur with episodes of varying duration and sometimes persisting symptoms. Spinal research has found that reoccurrence is dramatically reduced with an active approach to spinal pain- not passive!
• Back pain is largely due to day to day lifestyle, poor sitting postures and often simply not enough awareness of how to use the correct muscles of our spine and stomach .
• About 33% will go on to develop sciatica (leg pain) and will not naturally improve without active treatment and education
• Back tightness,weakness or pain can limit sporting performance considerably and often lead to chroninc soft tissue injury such as hamstring pain, groin and quadriceps injury.

Improvements in range of movement and retraining of core stabilisation muscles will significantly decrease the frequency and severity of episodes ...and can be done while you are doing your daily tasks or at work.

How to manage an acute flare up:

• Acute flare ups can occur from small incidents such as bending to pick up a shoe, coughing and lots of sitting in bad positions- even your couch!
• Management for an acute low back incident is different to maintenance management

Pain is generated by two sources = mechanical + chemical components.

To help with the inflammatory response (worst in the first 2-7 days and can last indefinitely)

• anti-inflammatory and pain relieving medications are advised .You may need to see your GP if needed.
• unload the spine to decrease the inflammatory response in the most comfortable position (lying down, keeping straight)
• Phone The Sports Injury Clinic to get on the spot advice from one of our expert physiotherapists.

AVOID driving, sitting, bending and lifting while acute symptoms are still severe . Remember - something is injured!

• If you must sit, use a lumbar roll and use correct technique as advised by your practitioner. Remember to use your core when sitting . It helps in reducing the back pressure.

• Taping or bracing of your spine can be used in this stage to stop further injury and pain. It also will teach you to avoid the aggravating positions and assist in educating your correct posture.

See your physiotherapist for treatment to help settle the acute episode in conjunction with the self management
Once the acute flare up is subsiding :

• Exercises will usually be possible to alleviate pain (as guided by your therapist)

Manual treatment with your physiotherapist can be more specific and will speed up the recovery process

• Maintenance exercises for life!!

Exercises should be done regularly for the back to ensure flexibility is restored and maintained (as guided by your physio)

Correct sitting and working postures need to become habit, and the use of a lumbar roll, fitball or ergonomic seating is essential especially for those with predominantly sitting occupations. Remember, up to 300% times your body weight goes through your spine when you sit !

Your Back Program

Investigations

Sometimes investigations will be required and your physiotherapist can refer for Xray + MRI scan. You may be requested to visit your GP or physician for other investigations

Long term studies show that the incidence of back pain can be reduced significantly with an active program that is correctly prescribed. Specifically postural correction and core stabilization exercises reduce the reoccurrence rate dramatically ( Jull, Richardson et al.)

Suggestions to take control of your spine:

• A formal assessment to define your specific diagnosis. What is causing your back pain?
• Investigations that are meaningful and specifically referred.
• Real Time Ultrasound assessment to learn how to activate your core muscles correctly with the right degree of control. Can you activate your core muscles correctly right now while you are sitting?
• Injection procedures to help localize the problem can be requested by your treating physiotherapist. Follow up procedures to assist in pain reduction can then be considered. Ask your physiotherapist at the Sports Injury Clinic about information on Injection procedures.
• Self help programs for recovery.As well as supervised programs offered at the sports injury clinic, self help programs can be issued for home and work.

You have options to treat your back condition and we are committed to assisting you to find a way to improve your backs future!

THE SPORTS INJURY CLINIC ANNOUNCES ITS 2007 RESEARCH INITIATIVE
The utilisation of Real Time Ultrasound (RTUS)

In collaboration with Monash University Physiotherapy Department, The Sports Injury Clinic will be researching treatment options in the treating knee pain using RTUS. We have utilised data collected over a 2 ½ year period and will be assisted by Professor Jenny Keating (Head of Monash Physiotherapy Department) and selected physiotherapy honour students. We look forward to reporting our finding to you.