Winter Injuries

It’s not just skiing, snowboarding and messing about on slopes that cause many of the common injuries treated at Capital Orthopaedics during the winter season.

Snow sports are renowned for causing sprains, strains and fractures – with knees, ankles, wrists and shoulders taking a battering on those slippery alpine slopes. Even the most experienced skier or snowboarder is at risk from injury, whether through not building up strength and mobility in the weeks prior to the holiday, not warming up properly on the slopes or just being unlucky enough to get painfully entangled with other piste-users.

Even if you stay home, though, the risks of joint, muscle and tendon injuries increase during the winter – and not just when it’s cold and icy. The shorter days mean that more people are out and about after dark, making pavements, roads and paths more treacherous by the simple fact that we can’t see hazards as clearly. Wet leaves, sopping pavements and mud are all contributors to people having accidents that lead to painful and potentially long-term injuries such as ankle sprains, cartilage tears, fractures or tendon damage.

Those who exercise outdoors are more prone to injury during the winter, too – such as cyclists skidding on wet roads or joggers slipping on muddy paths. Warming up is more important when it’s cold, but you’d be surprised how many people end up with tendon and muscle injuries because they haven’t adapted their warm-up routine to the colder temperatures.

Injury prevention tips

· Think about the conditions and risks before you head outside in the winter. It might sound obvious, but consider your footwear: Do you have shoes that are more stable and grippy on muddy, wet ground? And think about altering your journey – are there pathways, cycle paths or roads that become more treacherous when they are wet, covered in leaves or prone to being very icy?

· For sportspeople, we advise boosting your warmup routine during the winter months. We often write about warming up properly on the slopes – not just doing a few star-jumps and downing a cappuccino. But that advice is just as relevant for runners, joggers and anyone participating in outdoor activities.

· It’s also worth thinking about strengthening the muscles around your joints if you’re planning on doing any exercise outside during the winter. Stronger knees, ankles and shoulders will prevent more serious damage if you do have an accident, and will help you recover faster.

· Older people are particularly at risk of injury from falls on slippery surfaces and less well-lit pathways during winter. The older we get, the more important it is to focus on muscle strength – it improves our stability, making us less likely to lose balance on unstable, slippery ground. And stronger muscles around the joints also prevent more serious injury if a fall does occur.

· If you have weaker, less dense bones (it happens to everyone as we age, but is worse for those who have conditions like osteoporosis), then muscle strength is key to preventing fractures which may result from a fall. Anyone who is at

greater risk of more serious injury should take the time to consider their route and think about alternatives to using particularly treacherous paths.

At Capital Orthopaedics, here are some of the injuries that we treat more often during the winter months:

Ankle sprain

A classic winter sports injury, ankle sprains are also more common in our British winters. Caused by rolling or twisting your ankle, a sprain can vary in severity, but needs to be taken seriously if the pain, swelling and instability continues for more than a week. Sprains happen when the ligaments which connect the bones of your joint are stretched beyond their normal range of movement. Tendons (the fibrous bands which connect muscles to the bones of the joint) may also be overstretched, and other structures of the joint may be damaged (such as the smooth cartilage that coats the bones, or the gel-filled bursa in the middle of the joint). When these elements are stretched, torn or damaged, the joint swells up and gets inflamed. In some cases, a sprain will settle down with rest, ice, compression and elevation. However, many people make a sprain worse by ignoring the symptoms and continuing to out weight through the joint.

For any ankle sprains whose symptoms of pain, instability or swelling continue for more than a week, we advise consulting with the experts at Capital Orthopaedics. Imaging such as an MRI or x-ray will enable us to give you the best course of treatment for your ankle sprain.

Knee Ligament Injuries

A classic skiing / snowboarding injury, knee ligament damage is also a more frequent injury during the winter months in the UK, particularly among rugby and football players. The tough, stabilising ligaments in your knee joint may be stretched or torn as a result of twisting your knee in a fall or while trying to change direction suddenly on wet, unstable ground. Damaged ligaments can usually be treated conservatively, focusing on resting and icing the joint, then building up strength around the knee and reducing inflammation. Serious ligament tears may require surgical reconstruction or repair. Common knee injuries we treat include:

· Medial Cruciate Ligament injury

· Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL) tears

· Posterior Cruciate Ligament (PCL) tears

· Multi ligament injury

Wrist Fractures

Usually broken when putting your hand out to break a fall, wrist fractures are especially common among snowboarders, but are also frequently seen in cyclists, runners and anyone whose bones are weaker due to age or conditions such as osteoporosis.In fractures where there is no bone displacement, a cast has to be worn for six weeks to enable the bone to heal. If the bones are misaligned or there is other damage to the wrist structures, orthopaedic surgery may be needed to fix the bones in place.The Capital Orthopaedics team provides physiotherapy to help you recover your strength and range of motion as quickly as possible after a wrist fracture.

Shoulder injuries

Impact on the shoulder from a fall – whether on an outstretched arm or a direct blow to the shoulder – is a typical winter injury, whether from snow sports, outdoor sports such as football and rugby, or any number of activities that are impacted by wet ground, poor weather conditions and reduced visibility. A twisting or wrenching of the shoulder can also result in damage to the bones, cartilage or tendons in your shoulder joint. Typical injuries that we treat include:

· Rotator cuff tears

· Labral tears

· Shoulder dislocation

· Broken collarbone (clavicle)

· ACJ dislocation

CAPITAL ORTHOPAEDICS

We offer a range of nonsurgical treatments for joint, tendon and muscle injuries. Our expert consultant orthopaedic surgeons will always carry out surgical repair, if required, using the least invasive methods.

The Capital Orthopaedics team offers advice and targeted physical therapy to reduce the risk of injury on your next winter sports trip.

Winter Injuries

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