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Kim Clijsters hip injury explained
Kim Clijsters is an injury doubt going into the Australian Open this week.
The world number two has revealed that she has inflamed her left hip joint and requires physiotherapy treatment in an attempt to be fit for the tournament in Melbourne.
Clijsters explained, "I had an MRI scan and it's shown I have an inflammation of the hip joint and tendon. The good news is that there is no tear of the muscle."
The Belgian continued, "I'm going to receive more treatment and do some stabilisation exercises. At that point I'll have a better idea of my condition."
Clijsters was still uncertain about her physical condition on the eve of the tournament, but felt she wouldn’t paly if the hip problem was hindering her game. The 22 year old explained that the problem has been there for some time, saying, "I had a hip problem during the clay court season last year which was also a little bit from sliding. It's definitely not a natural movement for the human body to make."
Although stabilisation exercises will help athletes to prevent and recover from injury, it is unlikely that they will make much difference to an acute hip injury. Inflammation of the hip joint is usually secondary to trauma caused by a bone against bone contact. Sometimes there can be damage to the hip joint cartilage. The inflammation and pain is the body’s natural way of letting you know that you have to take it easy.
For a pro tennis player who is about to miss another Australian Open due to injury, taking it easy is not an option. Clijsters admitted, “Normally, I'm not very big on taking anti-inflammatories or painkillers, but that's definitely something I'll do this tournament. And then I'm sure I'll just have a body cleanse when I get back home."
Non Steroidal Anti-Inflammatory Drugs (NSAIDs) are commonly used in the treatment of acute sports injuries. NSAIDs are used primarily for reducing the pain, heat, swelling and redness that is associated with inflammation. The three most commonly used NSAIDs are aspirin, acetaminophen, and ibuprofen. Aspirin has many trade names by which it is also known. Acetaminophen is manufactured under the trade name Paracetamol, and also as Tylenol and Datril. Other NSAIDs used in sports medicine include Flurbiprofen (Ansaid), Indomethacin (Indocin), Ibuprofen (Advil, Motrin, Nuprin, Nurofen), Naproxen (Naprosyn) and Diclofenac (Voltaren).
The aim of NSAID use is to reduce the inflammatory response following injury. Following an acute injury, the inflammatory response is mediated by chemicals which are released by the damaged cells. These chemicals cause blood vessels to open (vasodilation) and blood and cellular fluid to leak into the tissues (extravasation). This causes swelling, pain, redness and a loss of function of the injured part. NSAID treatment is an attempt to reduce this response in order that the total rehabilitation time can be reduced.