Rehabilitation from sports injuries: from theory to practice

Abstract

A great number of injuries occur in the context of recreational physical activities and competitive athletics. Adherence to sport injury rehabilitation means injured athlete's compliance (or not) to a sports medicine/injury personnel's instructions of participating in a rehabilitation programme in a clinic, and/or doing rehabilitation exercises on home. It has emerged as an area of interest among physiotherapists and other allied professionals (i.e., sport trainers, physicians). This article reviews compliance among injured athletes in the recovery process by presenting the protection motivation theory, personal investment theory, and models of cognitive appraisal. Also, it reviews key research findings about these three theoretical models. In addition, practical guidelines and specific strategies are offered to sport injury rehabilitation personnel to enhance an athlete's adherence to injury rehabilitation. Sports medicine/injury personnel should educate athletes about their injuries and rehabilitation and increase effective communication and active listening. Also, sports medicine/injury personnel should provide social support and encourage positive beliefs of injured athletes. In addition, coping with pain and setting short term goals help athletes to increase their compliance to programmes of rehabilitation.

Psychology in sports injury rehabilitation

“…Longer term goals might include specific dates for a return to training and competition. Christakou and Lavallee (2009) noted that "athletes who have negative cognitive appraisals of an injury tend to have negative thoughts that can lead to emotional disturbance and subsequently possible non-compliance to rehabilitation programmes". In the case study, the athlete feels that he has not recovered from a previous injury and is thinking negatively about the likelihood of full recovery.…”

“…According to Christakou and Lavallee (2009), "realistically achievable goals create positive expectations and beliefs about goal attainment, thereby enhancing motivation and adherence to the rehabilitation programme". In the case study, the podiatrist will seek to reduce pain & swelling with appropriate use of rest, ice, orthoses, strapping etc.…”

“…To help the athlete overcome these emotions, the practice nurse must be honest in coming to a shared understanding of the injury. Like all sports medicine/injury rehabilitation personnel, the practice nurse should respond to anxieties about treatment and its potential for success (Christakou and Lavallee, 2009). Weinberg and Gould (2011) emphasise the importance of building rapport with the injured athlete, noting that health care professionals should demonstrate their understanding of the psychological impact of injury, provide emotional support.…”

Clinical management of immunosuppression in sportsmen-women: recommendations for sports medicine physicians and physiotherapists

“…Finally, in order to optimize treatment, it is critical that all members of the health-care team treating the athlete have good communication with one another concerning the progression and responses of the athlete if symptoms develop and persist [2,4,10].…”

Sport injuries treated at a physiotherapy center specialized in sports

“…Some of the risk factors are inherent to specific physical activities practices and cannot change (12). Therefore, the sports injuries treatment is a challenge that involves several professionals with a common goal: to promote the return of the injured athlete whether he or she is professional, amateur or recreational to his or her normal sports practice (15). To do so, it is important to know the most recurrent injury types as well as the profile of the athletes arriving at the clinics/ hospitals (12).…”