Treating Kids’ Minor Sports Injuries
If your child participates
in an organized sport this year, it’s very likely
he or she will experience some sort of minor injury.
According to the National Institute of Health, an
estimated 30 million children and adolescents participate
in organized sports each year in the United States.
Of those children, 3.2 million between the ages of
5 and 14 are injured while participating in athletic
activities.
Some of the most common minor sports injuries children
and adolescents experience are sprains, strains, bruising
and contusions. To immediately relieve the pain and
swelling, school and recreational league coaches,
high school athletic trainers and others will now
be able to use what the pros use: Gebauer’s
Instant Ice.
Jim Ramsay, head athletic trainer
for the New York Rangers, has been using Gebauer topical
refrigerant sprays for years. “Instant Ice is
great for on-the-scene care,” says Ramsay. “If
a player gets hit on the wrist or takes a puck off
the shin, I can easily anesthetize the area with Instant
Ice to reduce the pain.”
A nonflammable skin refrigerant,
Gebauer’s Instant Ice is a better choice than
ice for immediate temporary relief because it’s
less messy, easier to transport and more efficient
as each can contains 50 applications.
In conjunction with the immediate
use of ice or a topical anesthetic, the National Athletic
Trainers Association (NATA) recommends that the most
effective way to treat an acute injury, such as an
ankle sprain, is through R.I.C.E., which stands for
Rest, Ice, Compress and Elevate.
* Rest: Moving about will lead
to more inflammation and pain.
* Ice: Cold will reduce swelling
and pain. Use a skin refrigerant such as Gebauer’s
Instant Ice immediately following injury, but use
an ice pack or bag as recommended above.
* Compress: Control swelling
through application of a light pressure wrap.
* Elevate: Elevate the area
to reduce swelling by draining the fluids through
gravity.
