Injury Process

Injuries can be due to a number of factors. One way injuries occur is due to repetitive or overuse where the same motion is repeated over and over-typing on the computer, swimming, running, etc. Injuries can also be due to a single forceful event such as twisting an ankle, falling, or getting tackled.

Single Event Injury
What is it?
These are injuries that are due to a specific event. This includes injuries such as a sprain or strain. When you sprain your ankle and you are in pain, you know exactly when and where you injured your ankle. If you are involved in an auto accident and suffer from neck or back pain, you can trace the pain back to that specific incident.

How is it typically treated?
When a person suffers from a singular event/traumatic injury, not only is there pain at the site of injury, but in a lot of cases, other tissues around the area such as muscles can tighten up and possibly spasm to help protect the weak and injured area. By loosening the muscles around the injured area, tension can be relieved from the injured area, helping decrease pain. In cases were there is severe trauma (fracture, dislocation, etc.), patients are referred to the necessary medical professional for further evaluation.

Repetitive Stress/Overuse
What is it?
When soft tissues are overused through repetitive stress (repeating the same motion over and over) the tissues can become inflamed due to irritation. When the tissue becomes inflamed, the body lays down scar tissue as part of the healing process. The longer a person tends to overuse a particular soft tissue, the more scar tissue will be laid down, causing an overuse injury to be more complex to treat, requiring more treatment. When the layers of scar tissue are laid down, they can be disorganized. It is this disorganization that can cause decreased flexibility as well as range of motion. Think of the disorganized fibers as a ball or bump of junk around the overused area that typically won’t go away on its own. With an overuse injury, it is impossible to link the injury to one specific injury. Typically it is linked to performing the same activity over and over such as typing, swimming, running, etc.

How can it be treated?
The most effective way for treating scar tissue is by attacking the scar tissue directly so it can be decreased. The goal is to break down the disorganized fibers so that when it heals correctly, the fibers will form parallel to the fibers of the tissue that are already in place. There are a number of ways this can be done. It can be a done a number of ways with your hands-think of a deep, specific massage focused at the injury site. Another way is with Graston Technique®. What is great about this treatment is the tools have great sensitivity, even more so then hands, so the patient and the practitioner will be able to feel the scar tissue. With the Graston Technique® instrument tools, patient and practitioner will be able to feel the knot or adhesion or scar tissue as it decreases.