How to Heal a Soft Tissue Injury
At Longevity Exercise Physiology Drummoyne, Edgecliff, Marrickville, Bella Vista, Randwick, Lindfield and Balmain we treat many clients who have experienced a soft tissue injury such as a hamstring strain or an ankle sprain.
For as long as we can remember the most appropriate and well-known way to manage a soft tissue injury was by following what is known as RICER – Rest, Ice Compression, Elevation, Referral.
The RICER approach to rehabilitation is now considered outdated as it only focuses on the acute phase and doesn’t consider the sub-acute and chronic phases. The new approach to soft tissue management is PEACE and LOVE and takes into consideration immediate care following an injury and the subsequent management needed to heal the injury long term.
PEACE (Dubois B, Esculier J 2020)
P – Protection: Avoid activities and movements that increase pain for the first few days after injury
E – Elevation: Elevate the injured limb higher than the heart as often as possible
A – Avoid Anti-Inflammatories: Avoid anti-inflammatory medications and icing the area as they impair tissue healing.
C – Compression: Use elastic bandage or taping to reduce swelling and improve quality of life.
E – Education: Your body knows best. Be as active as your body will allow and avoid unnecessary passive treatments and medical investigations and let nature play its role.
LOVE (Dubois B, Esculier J 2020)
L – Load: Let pain guide your gradual return to normal activities. Optimally load the area without exacerbating the pain.
O – Optimism: Stay positive and confident that you will recover with time
V – Vascularisation: Start pain free cardiovascular exercise a few days after the injury to increase motivation and promote blood flow and function.
E – Exercise: Exercise to help restore strength, mobility and proprioception. This will reduce the risk of re-injury.
If you would like more advice on how to heal a soft tissue injury and get back to the activities that you enjoy then contact Longevity Exercise Physiology Drummoyne, Edgecliff, Marrickville, Bella Vista, Randwick, Lindfield and Balmain on 1300 964 002 to enquire today.
Wrtiten by Daniel Elias Arciuli
References
Dubois B, Esculier J (2020) Soft-tissue injuries simply need PEACE and LOVE British Journal of Sports Medicine;54:72-73.