 It’s
vital to seek immediate medical attention if a sports-related
injury involves severe pain and swelling, numbness, or if you
can’t move the limb or joint. But for mild sprains, strains,
bumps or bruises, follow the RICE program:
- Rest: Take a break for a day or two to let
the injured area rest and recover. Your body needs time
to heal the injury. Once you can go about your usual daily
routine without pain, you can ease yourself back into a
full slate of activities.
- Ice: Apply an icepack (or even a bag of
frozen peas, wrapped in a towel) to the injured area for
15-20 minutes every few hours. Ice helps to cut down on
swelling and inflammation by slowing blood flow to the injury,
as well as lessening the pain by numbing it a bit.
- Compression: Between ice treatments, wrap
an elastic bandage around the affected part to apply pressure
and reduce swelling. It should be fairly tight, but make
sure it doesn’t press on nerves or cut off blood circulation
— if the end of the limb turns blue, that’s too
tight! For the same reason, don’t wear the bandage
at night.
- Elevation: Let gravity do the work -- try
to keep the injured limb raised to prevent fluids from pooling
in the inflamed tissues. For an injured leg, prop it up
above the hips when lying down. Injured arms can be held
up in a sling.
In addition, you can lessen inflammation and relieve pain by
taking ASA, ibuprofen, naproxen or other antiinflammatory drugs.
Check with your doctor or pharmacist first before taking any
medications, and take care not to exceed the recommended doses.
If, after following these steps, the injury doesn’t seem
to be getting any better within 48 hours, it’s best to
see your doctor.
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