Injuries can happen at any time. Whether your child’s jumping on the trampoline and hurts his ankle, or you fall while you’re at work, sprains, strains, and broken bones can occur when you least expect it. However, Quick Family Urgent Care, serving Davie, FL and the general vicinity, is available to accurately diagnose and provide treatment quickly.

The pain of a sprain and strain are very similar, so you may not be able to tell one from the other based on your discomfort level.

A sprain is a stretched or torn ligament, which is the tissue that connects two bones together. It’s caused by a twist, blow, or fall. Most commonly, people sprain their ankle. You’re more susceptible to a sprain if you’ve had one in that area in the past.

The severity of a sprain varies as follows:

– Mild sprain – joint is stable and not loose
– Moderate sprain – partial tear of the ligament, sometimes causes joint instability
– Severe sprain – ligament tears or separates totally from the bone, affects function of the joint

Signs of a sprain include:

– Tenderness
– Swelling
– Pain
– Bruising
– Skin discoloration
– Stiffness

If you have a sprained ankle, you may have difficulty putting weight on the area.

A strain, on the other hand, is when you twist, pull, or tear a tendon or muscle. In some cases, you may injure tendons and a muscle simultaneously. It’s possible to suffer from a chronic strain if you overwork your muscles or tendons on a regular basis. You may suffer from a strain if you partake in extended periods of intense exercise without receiving an adequate amount of rest.

You might notice any of the following symptoms:

– Muscle spasms
– Pain
– Swelling
– Muscle weakness
– Muscle cramping

A mild strain occurs when you only stretch or pull a muscle slightly. A moderate strain, on the other hand, will cause a decrease in the function of your muscle since it causes you to overstretch or partially tear your muscle or tendon. When you have a severe strain, you could rupture a muscle or tendon completely.

Two of the most common strains include back and hamstring strains. Athletes who participate in basketball or volleyball and twist frequently are prone to back strains. Running, leaping, and kicking lead to many hamstring strains.

A broken bone may be a slight fracture or an actual break in the bone. A break can vary in the degree of severity.

The first step of the process is for us to diagnose your injury. Often, we use an X-ray, CT scan, or MRI to look at the area. We’ll be able to see the bone or tissue to assess it for damage. We can also tell the extent of your injury.

Next, we treat the problem accordingly. For example, if you have a strain or a sprain, we’ll recommend self-care techniques in order to minimize the amount of damage. The goal of the treatment is to reduce inflammation and promote healing as soon as possible. We may bandage the area to reduce swelling.

If you have a broken ankle, we cast the area to allow it to heal in place. We’ll also provide you with crutches, so you can walk.

Another important aspect of our treatment for any injury is to supply you with advice on preventing an injury in the future.

Walk in today if you suspect you have a strain, sprain, or break. You can call us at (954) 640-1200.