Injury Prevention Guide

This is inflammation of the patellar tendon that attaches the muscles at the front of the leg (the quadriceps) to the shinbone. It helps to straighten the knee. Constant jumping and landing as in netball can lead to patellar tendon pain and tenderness in the knee which continues at rest and during play and is aggravated by trying to straighten the knee. Squatting and kneeling may also be difficult. Treatment consists of the RICE protocol and sports chiropractic treatment.

Typical repair time: 6 weeks – 3months.

Recovery is dependent on severity and what caused the injury in the first place. With Jumpers knee it is important to get your ankle mobility, gluteal strength, hip and knee alignment assessed by your sports chiropractor as weakness in these areas often contribute to jumpers knee.

A finger dislocation is where the bones of the finger are moved (dislocated) from their normal position and it can occur in any of the joints of any finger. During netball, they are most common when the ball hits the end of the finger (pushes together the joints) or when the ball hits the fingers on your palm side (causes your finger joints to bend backwards or ‘hyperextend’). Both may lead to a dislocation or fracture as well as damage to ligaments or tendons. If a dislocation happens, an x-ray will ensure that the alignment of the joint is correct and that there is no fracture present. Treatment will depend on the extent of the injury and can range from ‘buddy taping’ to moulded finger or hand splints.

Typical repair time: 2-4 weeks if just ligamentous damage. 6-8 weeks if fractured.

This netball injury occurs when the ligaments in your ankle are overstretched during running, jumping, landing unbalanced or sudden changes in movement. Ankle sprains vary in their severity – from a slight ‘twisted’ or ‘rolled’ ankle sprain to complete ligament ruptures, avulsion fractures or broken bones. Common symptoms include pain, swelling and some bruising, as well as difficulty with bearing weight on the injured side.

If you have applied RICE (rest, ice, compression, elevation) and the swelling hasn’t gone down or you still can’t weight bear on your foot then it is worth getting assessed by your sports chiropractor to determine the severity of your sprained ankle.

Typical repair time: Once again it depends on the extent of the damage but the average time for ankle ligaments to heal is 6 weeks.  It is important to build the strength in the ankle ligaments and prevent the loss of flexibility in the calf and ankle to avoid re-injury.

This is a common, painful condition experienced by netballers who place a repetitive load on the tendon. It is characterised by pain at the back of the heel which increases with exercise and decreases when the exercise stops. There is also difficulty walking or rising on the toes. If one continues to put pressure on the tendon it may snap, sometimes with a loud popping sound. Therefore, the best treatment for Achilles tendinopathy is to apply RICE (Rest, Ice, Compression and Elevation). Your sports chiropractor can provide treatment such as deep tissue release, dry needling and design a rehab program to stretch and strengthen the calf muscles, appropriately reload the achilles tendon and prevent re-injury.

Typical Repair time:  This one is a doozy! It depends on your age, how long you have had the pain for and how severe the pain is.  The earlier you seek treatment the better. If it is your first experience of achilles pain then typically you can expect full recovery within 4-6 weeks. If you experience chronic (have had achilles pain for more then 8months) it is more likely to be degenerative tendinopathy which can take several months to recover and rehabilitate.