Prevent Knee Injuries During the Madness!
To basketball fans, March Madness is a time for fun, excitement and a little friendly competition between college rivals! To basketball players and doctors, this is a time to potentially deal with lower body injuries. From torn ACLs to serious cases of jumper’s knee, I’ve seen some of my patients get benched for the remainder of their season because they didn’t take preventative steps to avoid the injury altogether. These are some of the most common knee injuries in basketball and steps you can take to prevent them!
ACL Injuries
The Anterior Cruciate Ligament, or ACL, is the point in your leg where three bones meet to form your knee joint: your thighbone (femur), shinbone (tibia), and kneecap (patella). Your kneecap provides the protection in front of the joint. Torn ACLs are extremely common in basketball because they occur from changing direction rapidly, stopping or slowing down suddenly or even landing from a jump incorrectly. Think almost every play in basketball; now imagine the stress it causes to your knee!
Prevention: ACL Injuries are more difficult to prevent because they can happen suddenly. A step an athlete can take to prevent any knee injury is to consult with a sports medicine specialist. With a quick exam and overview, a trained individual will be able to spot any weak muscle areas. At Next Level Wellness Center, our trained doctors can give you movements to strengthen and stretch any weak areas.
Patellar Tendonitis (aka “Jumper’s Knee”)
Patellar Tendinitis, or ‘Jumper’s Knee’, is an injury to the tissue that connects the kneecap to the shinbone, or patellar tendon. This injury is common in basketball because of the frequent jumping. That slam-dunk that won the game might be doing more damage to the athlete’s knee than it appears! Some of my patients come in with swollen knees, stiffness and knee pain. The symptoms can be discreet which leads to athletes taking the pain instead of seeing a doctor for help.
Prevention: It’s best to take a proactive approach and try to avoid Jumper’s Knee altogether. Stretching is very important, especially to stretch the quads and hip flexors after workouts. This will lead to more move-ability with your joints. Strength training your legs will also be beneficial and will provide your knees with the support they need for your high jumps on the court.
Meniscal Tears
The meniscus is the tough and rubbery piece of cartilage located between the thighbone and shin acting as the shock absorber for the knee. This is a common injury from those moments when a basketball player’s knee twists awkwardly during a play.
Prevention: The good news is that meniscus tears are preventable! Just like jumper’s knee and ACL tears, strengthening moves and stretching will help prevent your meniscus from tearing. Another way to prevent this injury is to use protective gear or a brace to support your knee and keep everything in place.
The most pivotal step when preventing knee injuries in basketball is to consult with a trained doctor. At Next Level Wellness, our chiropractic team of doctors, Vasili Gatsinaris, James Kim, and Adam Abulghualya specialize in chiropractic and wellness care and are dedicated to helping you.
To learn more about our variety of services or to schedule an appointment, contact us or call
949-263-9003 today.