Can Chinese Orthopaedic Treat Sport Injuries Effectively?

Cure Injuries Using Traditional Chinese Medicine 

Sports lovers, either professionals or armatures, are always prone to bumps, twists, hard impacts, friction, falls or stretching. As a result, they may be exposed to sport injuries of two types when practicing, training or competing in their favorite events. These are either acute injuries, or chronic injuries.

An acute injury, one that is received during a sport-related incident, can quickly be treated using Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM). However, if left untreated for long, or if the sports person continues to perform activities that aggravate the injury, the injury can become chronic. One of the predominant symptoms of chronic injury is pain.

While many conventional sports medicine specialists and physiotherapists do treat serious sport injuries, due to the complex nature of these injuries, it often takes a lot of time to diagnose and deliver efficient treatment. Comparatively, TCM practices of Tui Na for example (Chinese massotherapy) has proven to be far more valuable in delivering quick and effective relief, especially when dealing with serious and chronic sport injuries.

The Chinese Orthopaedic practice of Tui Na is a deep rooted tradition from ancient Chinese civilization. Ancient practitioners of Chinese martial arts, a sport that’s prone to delivering and receiving injuries, has had a great influence in the development of Chinese orthopaedic knowledge. It involves a multi-skilled approach of massages, manipulative actions, friction and stretching that delivers effective results. Practitioners are quickly able to relieve chronic pain and treat internal injuries and organ disorders using these techniques.

Whether the sports injury results in internal damage, or causes topical symptoms of swelling, pain and discoloration, Chinese orthopaedic practices usually begin with locating the spots where the injury or pain originates. The “healing touch” that Chinese orthopaedic practitioners deliver through intricate maneuver and massages:

• increases the flow of blood to the injured organ/area
• helps drain oedematous fluids from the impacted limbs
• causes reduction in fibrinous inflammation of tissue
• reduces tension in the muscles
• relieves soreness and stiffness in tissue, joints and muscle

These effects, which are the result of direct intervention at specific pain points using TCM techniques, directly help relieve a number of chronic musculoskeletal pain-causing conditions, many of which are caused by sporting activity.

Unlike other treatments, Chinese orthopaedic practitioners interact directly with the injured area, pushing, touching, pressing and rubbing the injury. As a result, much of the injured surface receives a fresh infusion of blood supply, which then reduces the swelling and inflammation. This then reduces pain that was originally caused by the sport injury.

Chinese Sports medicine practitioners may also rely on Acupuncture to treat some sport injuries. By directly stimulating a number of biological functions in the nervous system, endocrine system and immune systems, Acupuncture can encourage endorphins in the injured sports person’s body to kick in. This causes tightened and injured muscles to relax, and inflamed tissue to be pacified because of increased blood flow, which promotes quicker healing of injuries.