I Went to Urgent Care… What’s Next?

Have you recently experienced an injury such as an ankle sprain, shoulder injury, or low back strain? Oftentimes, athletes will head to urgent care after a musculoskeletal injury to get care, only to be told “rest, ice, elevate, and take ibuprofen - it’ll get better in a few weeks” and are shown the door. While instructions like “R.I.C.E.” (rest, ice, compression, elevation) can be helpful short-term, they don’t get you back to functional activities or competitive sports.

Here are steps you can take following an injury to get you back to activity:
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1. Seek out care if necessary - if the injury is significant, such as a possible fracture, severe bruising or swelling, inability to bear weight through the affected area, numbness or tingling, or a new physical deformity, seek out care at an urgent care clinic or emergency room. Urgent care clinics and emergency rooms are often equipped with imaging technology, so they can rule out a more severe injury such as a fracture or complete ligament tear. 
2. Relative rest - after ruling out a significant injury, you may follow R.I.C.E protocols for a day or 2, which include resting the injured area and icing for 20-30 minutes at a time a few times per day (if possible, while elevating and using compression on the injured area). Depending on symptoms, you may also take medication such as ibuprofen as instructed by a physician or as instructed on the medication bottle. 
3. Keep it moving - depending on the severity of your injury, you may start gentle movement immediately, or if it’s really painful or swollen, you may wait a few days for it to calm down. What we frequently see as clinicians is that after an injury, athletes will put on a brace or avoid moving an injured area for weeks at a time because it’s uncomfortable to move or put weight through. Unfortunately, if we put on a brace or avoid movement altogether, the injured area can get really stiff and sometimes can be even more painful. If a fracture or other significant injury has been ruled out, gentle movement can include active range of motion at the injured area and partial to full weight-bearing. For example, if you recently suffered an ankle sprain, some early exercises to include are ankle circles or drawing the alphabet with your foot, which encourages movement in multiple directions, and shifting some of your weight from your non-injured side to the injured side to get yourself used to putting more weight through that foot.
4. Seek out additional care - if you enjoy participating in active recreational hobbies or competitive sports, you would likely benefit from individualized feedback and progressions. You probably spent months, if not years, getting yourself to the point where you could perform at that level, and a physical therapist will know the best ways to get you back to that level. As physical therapists, we are body and movement experts who take pride in helping people get back to the activities they love.

If you have recently suffered an injury, have yet to return to the level you performed at before an injury, or would like to level-up your performance and optimize your movement, click HERE to schedule a 1:1 visit with a Doctor of Physical Therapy to get back to your favorite activities!

Thanks for reading!
Dr. Chrissy, PT, DPT

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