Treatment for Winter
Sports Related Injuries

Winter Sports Injury Specialists

Simon Moyes and the Capital Orthopaedics team have decades of experience in treating snow sports injuries.

For twists, sprains, ligament, cartilage and tendon injuries, right through to serious fractures and dislocations – we offer expert diagnosis and treatment to get you back to mobility, strength and fitness after your injury.

Our treatments for skiing and snowboarding injuries include:

– Physiotherapy

– Shockwave therapy

– Injections to reduce inflammation and stimulate healing

– Minimally invasive reconstructive surgery

Winter Sports Injuries We Treat

Sprains, strains and fractures are common in snow sports – particularly around the knees, ankles, shoulders and wrists.

If you have ongoing symptoms after emergency treatment for an injury on the slopes, you may need further imaging and treatment when you return.

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 of sports medicine specialists offers advice and targeted physical therapy to reduce the risk of injury on your next winter sports trip.

Contact us here for swift diagnosis and effective treatment of any winter sports injuries.

Common Winter Sports Injuries

Knee Ligament Injuries

The tough, stabilising ligaments in your knee joint may be stretched or torn during skiing and snowboarding accidents. Damaged ligaments can be treated conservatively, focusing on building up strength around the knee and reducing inflammation. Serious ligament tears may require surgical reconstruction or repair. Common knee injuries we treat include:

This is a fracture of the talus bone, where it forms the bony lump on the outside of your ankle. The injury doesn’t always show up on an x-ray and can be misdiagnosed as a sprain.

Our expert radiologists use CT (bone) or MRI scans to ensure the correct diagnosis.

Treatment: may involve a non-weight-bearing cast or boot, or it may be necessary to fix the broken bone in place using surgery.

Skiier’s Thumb

Caused by a fall when holding a ski pole – the pole acts as a lever that wrenches the joint at the base of your thumb. This stretches the fibrous Ulnar collateral ligament, and can cause a sprain or a tear – or sometimes an avulsion fracture.

Treatment: Skier’s thumb is usually treated with splints, anti inflammatories, ice and rest, followed by physiotherapy to restore strength and mobility. We also offer shockwave therapy and injections to reduce inflammation and promote healing.

Unstable tears or fractures require surgery.

Wrist Fractures

Usually broken when putting your hand out to break a fall, wrist fractures are especially common among snowboarders. There are two main types of break:

  • Scaphoid fracture: a break in one of the eight small bones around the base of your hand. Symptoms are pain and swelling in the wrist.
  • Colles fracture: a break of the radius (forearm) bone where it connects to your wrist joint. Symptoms are excruciating pain above the wrist and swelling.

Treatment: In fractures where there is no bone displacement, you will wear a cast for six weeks to enable the bone to heal.

If 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.

Head and Spinal Injuries

In spite of the increase in protective equipment such as helmets, head injuries are common in all alpine sports. The Capital Orthopaedics team works within multidisciplinary teams at The Cromwell Hospital to diagnose and treat spinal and head trauma injuries.

Orthopaedic spinal injuries we treat include:

  • Slipped / herniated discs
  • Fractured vertebrae
  • Dislocated vertebrae

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 sports injury. 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

Orthopaedic Surgery for Snow Sports Injuries

Led by internationally renowned consultant orthopaedic surgeon, Simon Moyes,      the Capital Orthopaedics and Sports Medicine team includes expert surgeons, radiologists, nurses and physiotherapists.

Book an Appointment with an Orthopaedic Specialist


The Capital Orthopaedics team is made up of highly experienced medical professionals – from Mr Simon Moyes, the renowned orthopaedic consultant surgeon, to physicians, nurses, anaesthetists and physiotherapists.
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