Sports Injury Protocol. Out with the old & in with the new..

We all know the old acronyms for acute injury. R.I.C.E (rest, ice, compression, elevation) but its out with the old and in with the new.

You may have heard of two or three different acronyms over the last few years so I have explained them here.

First up is P.O.L.I.C.E, this is used as a general injury protocol for the acute phase. Think more bones, joints, ligaments here.

P = protect

OL = optimal load (as soon as possible)

I = ice (if needed)

C = compression

E = elevation

Then, you may have also heard of these..

P.E.A.C.E & L.O.V.E - These are more geared towards soft tissue damage, muscles and tendons for example.

P.E.A.C.E - for the acute phase and L.O.V.E for the sub-acute to chronic stages of injury. This is what they break down to, according to a great post in the British Medical Journal.

P = Protection - avoid activities and movements that increase pain during the first few days of injury.

E = Elevation - Elevate the injured limb higher than heart as often as possible.

A = Avoid Anti-inflammatories - as they can reduce tissue healing.

C = Compression - Use elastic bandage or tape to reduce swelling.

E = Education - Your body knows best, let nature play its role.

L = Load - Let pain guide your gradual return to normal activities, your body will tell you when it is safe to increase load.

O = Optimism - Condition the brain for optimal recovery by being confident and positive.

V = Vascularisation - Choose pain-free cardiovascular activities to increase blood flow to repairing tissues.

E = exercise - Restore mobility, strength and proprioception by adapting an active approach to recovery.

So there we are... follow these guidelines and give you injury the best change at healing properly and in a timely manner. If anyone would like a copy of an info graphic for this let me know.