You sprain your ankle, twist your knee or bust your shoulder – what do you do?
RICE or Rest Ice Compression Elevation is a 40yo catchphrase used widely to manage acute injuries. It stings for a bit but then it numbs the area and feels better – temporarily.
Recent research indicates that icing an acute injury may not do much at all and even (possibly) inhibit the healing process – yes really…(see article 1 below). But before we throw away convention, ice does normally really help to reduce pain and acute swelling and that can certainly give a better start than without icing. There seems to be no need to ice much more after that.
So I do still advocate for icing an acute injury, but what is more important is what you do in the time after to regain full fitness. This could be one week to months depending on the injury severity. It is so common for athletes of all levels and especially in school sports to see players return before they are in fact, fully fit. This increases the chances of reinjury and longer term problems.
I use the guide UNLESS:
U – unload – take the weight off for a few days – crutches or a sling can help
N – nurture – LET IT HEAL – even minor sprains take 2-3 weeks to be strong enough
L – load – gradually increase the load through the injured region as it heals
E – exercise – keep up general exercise and cardio in some way
S – strength – specific strength work for the muscles around the injury
S – skill – sports specific rehab exercises – like hopping, sideways movements, stopping, change direction, throwing, catching, tackling etc
RICE will suffice to make it feels nice but UNLESS you do your rehab right your going to pay a price! I think this works really well for school aged kids and amateur sports.
You can book online or call 31803854 to get advice and a management plan for your or your kids sports related injuries.
Two interesting articles here
Mirkin, G. (2014, March 16). Why Ice Delays Recovery.
https://www.drmirkin.com/fitness/why-ice-delays-recovery.html
Dubois, B. &Esculier, J-F. (2020). Soft-tissue injuries simply need PEACE and LOVE. British Journal of Sports Medicine. 54, 72-73.