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Save your skin
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Fitness for life Skin abrasions are common in sports and needs proper attention
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Sportsmen are prone to skin abrasions
Skin is the most commonly injured organ in sports. Although most skin injuries are minor and heal rapidly, a painful or poor-healing injury can impair performance and interfere with training. Poorly managed skin injuries can also be disfiguring.
Common skin injury
An abrasion, which occurs when a layer of skin peels off, is the commonest skin injury. The depth of the abrasion depends on the surface involved and on the force of the contact between skin and abrading surface.
Modern turfs have a low coefficient of friction, and an athlete can slide for a long distance before coming to a stop. The prolonged sliding generates heat, and the resulting abrasion is actually part-burn. Treatment of an abrasion involves gentle cleansing with a mild detergent and clean water.
Avoid hydrogen peroxide or povidone iodine. Do not scrub aggressively. Flush the wound with 0.9 per cent sodium chloride solution to get dirt out. A simple bacitracin zinc ointment and a dry dressing will suffice in most cases. Prevent abrasions by wearing sliding pads and long-sleeved clothes.
Chafing is chronic friction injury caused by rubbing of the skin against other body parts or clothing.
The inner thighs, axilla and neck are most vulnerable. Overweight people, bikers, joggers and tennis players are commonly affected. “Joggers nipple” surprisingly affects men more often than women.
Applying petroleum jelly to the chafing surface, and wearing tight-fitting cottons or modern sports apparel will help in most cases.
Calluses occur on areas of chronic friction. Most do not require treatment unless they turn painful or blister.
Well-fitted shoes, gloves, and rackets with cushioned grips will prevent most calluses. Salicylic acid ointments soften calluses; a pumice stone will scrape off most painless ones.
Blisters can be very painful. Gradually increasing exercise intensity while wearing new shoes or using a new racquet will prevent many blisters.
Acrylic socks and anti-perspirant sprays prevent build-up of moisture and reduce risk of blisters. Most blisters require no treatment; big ones might need pricking with a sterile needle. A doctor is the best person to do this.
Acne mechanica refers to papules and pustules that develop under protective gear like covering pads and helmets. These lesions often improve spontaneously in the off-season. Some cases might require tretinoin gel- to be prescribed only by a dermatologist.
RAJIV. M
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Metro Plus
Bangalore
Chennai
Coimbatore
Delhi
Hyderabad
Kochi
Madurai
Mangalore
Puducherry
Tiruchirapalli
Thiruvananthapuram
Vijayawada
Visakhapatnam
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