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Grant Chiropractic

(801) 682-4003

280 West 200 North

Kaysville, UT 84037

Common Winter Sports Injuries and Effective Chiropractic Treatment

Winter Sports Injuries

Utah is home to 10-world class ski resorts! Many residents throughout Utah enjoy flocking to the mountains for snow skiing, snow boarding, tubing, and other exciting activities. However, there are many people that end up injuring themselves on the hills thanks to incorrect modalities and common accidents that can easily occur when participating in sports. Did you know sports injuries are the second most common reason people visit the emergency room? If you are planning to head out and hit the slopes, or even go outside to build a snowman, here are some things you need to consider about the most common winter sports injuries and how effective chiropractic care can treat those sports injuries and often decrease the risk of surgery.

Ankle SprainsKaysville UT Winter Sports Injuries Treatment

Ankle sprains are so common! From a simple misstep that causes you to roll your ankle, to an intense sports injury, ankle injuries are happening daily. Snowboarder’s ankle is a common issue we treat in our Kaysville chiropractic office. While it does help to rest and ice your ankle, there are certain stretches and muscle manipulation we provide that will assist in repairing the damage to the ankle. Proper healing is vital or you can find your ankle continues to ache and throb and could lead to more serious problems in the future.

Concussion

One of the most common winter sports injuries is a concussion. Concussions occur often in the winter when people fall and slip on ice and snow. It’s easy for skiers and snowboarders to deal with concussions as a simple fall can easily cause a person to hit their head. Helmets are often recommended for people planning to go out skiing and snowboarding to help minimize the risk of concussion sports injuries. However, we often see people with concussions after ice skating. A nice afternoon at one of our local ice skating rinks can easily turn into a disaster. When you do take a tumble and end up with a concussion, you will likely see some of the following symptoms:

  • Blurry vision
  • Confusion
  • Dizziness
  • Exhaustion or tiredness
  • Nausea
  • Swelling at injury site
  • Vomiting

Chiropractic care following a concussion will include an adjustment as misalignment is common after a winter sports injuries. When the body is incorrectly aligned, it can lead to problems with the nervous system relaying messages along with effective blood flow. In addition to alignment, we will do an evaluation of your health and identify any underlying conditions that could cause difficulties healing following a concussion.

Knee Injuries

Our knees absorb shock throughout daily activities. Winter sports commonly include a lot of pivoting and movement from the knee. Ice skating, snowboarding, and skiing are all common sports that cause people to end up with knee injuries. If you fall on the knee, the injury is often worse as it strains the muscles by bending the knee in an unnatural way. Patients with sports injuries to your knee often find themselves in line for surgery due to torn ligaments and additional problems. If you have been recommended for knee surgery, we urge you to contact our office for pre-surgery knee treatment. We can assist in strengthening the muscles to make it easier on the recovery process. In some cases, we have even been able to help patients avoid surgery thanks to correct chiropractic techniques.

Wrist Injury

Falling while performing winter sports often leads to wrist injuries. Wrist injuries can be a simple sprain, or a painful break. The wrist has multiple bones and ligaments, making it easy for tearing of muscle fibers. However, many people do not know how severe the injury actually is and think it’s a simple sprain. It is important to have your wrist examined to know the type of damage you are dealing with. Contact our Kaysville chiropractic clinic for an examination of the wrist. If you are experiencing any of the following, contact us:

  • Limited movement ability
  • Swelling and inflammation
  • Redness or discoloration
  • Tender to the touch
  • Deformity
  • Numbness
  • Unable to move the wrist or fingers

Grant Chiropractic will focus on adjusting the carpal bones to help adjust the wrist to allow for correct blood flow. We will push and pull the wrist to see movements and which ones help to decrease pain. Our wrist injury treatment is based on the patient and the extent of the injury. Each patient receives their own patient treatment plan, unique to your injury. We find utilizing the body’s natural healing ability through correct modalities and manipulations, patients are able to return to their favorite winter sports sooner.

Trailer hitches: should you keep them on or take them off?

Ultimately, it depends on whether you would like to save your neck or your car.

In today’s work, it is likely that your trailer hitch is removable. The short square pipe containing a trailer hitch ball at the other end often goes into a receiver that is built into your truck or car.

Many people choose to leave the ball and hitch attached, even without the necessity of attaching a trailer, in the hopes of protecting their vehicle in case someone rear ends them or they back into something they don’t see.

This is a bad idea. Why? Unlike other areas of your car, your trailer hitch has no crush zones built into it. In fact, having a trailer hitch on the back of your vehicle makes the outcome worse if you do get hit from behind.

In normal circumstances, your bumper and the side panels of your car have crush zones built in. These serve to slow down and mitigate the impact in order to protect the occupants of the vehicle. When your trailer hitch is sticking out beyond the end of your car, the intended crush zones are much less effective. They aren’t able to spread force throughout the vehicle, so the impact is much like connecting your neck directly with the trailer hitch. The force directly impacts the areas of the neck and spine. Without the hitch attached, crumple zones cushion the hit like a shock absorber in order to soften the blow. You may still get hurt, but likely not as severely.

Some neck injuries become permanent, which can leave you with lifelong pain. It is important to do everything in your power to prevent injuries, with steps like taking the trailer hitch out of the receiver.

What’s the bottom line? It is better to put your hitch away when it is not in use in order to enable the crush zones to operate effectively. You can replace the bumper or fender of your vehicle, but you can’t replace your neck. We can help you with your neck pain, but it is far better to prevent, or at least diminish, the injury in the first place.

 

 

Citings: Spine Research Institute of San Diego, Personal Injury Training Institute.

By Dr. Todd N. Grant

(Chiropractic Physician, certified in motor vehicle occupant injuries)

Whiplash Treatment

When it comes to auto accidents, one of the most common injuries one will experience is whiplash. Finding the right treatment for whiplash can be challenging as each case is different. Certain spinal manipulations and stretching can lead to improvement, but many people find the stiffness and pain can last for weeks. During whiplash, there is a sudden flexion and extension of the neck.

According to research, about two-thirds of people involved in an auto accident will develop signs and symptoms related to whiplash. In most cases, these developments can take 48 hours for the symptoms to fully develop. In addition to car accidents, whiplash is also experienced from sports injuries, falls, slips, work accidents, and more.Whiplash Kaysville Auto Accident Chiropractic

The most common issue with whiplash relates to pain and stiffness of the neck. Not only do patients feel pain in the neck, it is common for there to be shoulder pain, upper back pain, upper chest pain, and even arm pain. Headaches are another common symptom, while others can experience nausea, problems swallowing, blurred vision, and dizziness.

Neck adjustment is one of the common treatment methods used for neck pain related to whiplash. A neck adjustment will target pain by improving the mobility of the spine, thereby increasing range of motion. The goal of the adjustment is focused on the treatment of stiffness and soreness, which will help in decreasing pain.

Speeding up the healing process will depend on the results we are seeing with patients. Some patients respond well to massage therapy and rehabilitative exercises. Other patients may need to consider additional treatments based on the severity of the injury.

Of course the best outcomes will involve the patients participation in the healing process. At-home stretching and movements are part of the overall treatment plan. Patient involvement in the program will have the best outcomes coupled with our doctor’s treatment program. If you are suffering from a whiplash injury, contact Grant Chiropractic today for an evaluation.

GRANT CHIROPRACTIC

280 W 200 N
Kaysville, UT 84037
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