Come to your own rescue with these treatments for common on-court injuries.
By Dana Sullivan
Even a minor injury like a blister can be a major problem on the court. But keeping a few basic first-aid supplies in your racquet bag and knowing how to treat some typical on-court injuries will keep you in the game, or at least get you back on court quickly. Here’s a look at some familiar scenarios, and how to treat them a.s.a.p., with advice from Dr. Christopher Van Tilburg, M.D., editor of Wilderness Medicine magazine and an avid tennis player.
The injury: Blister
How to treat it: “The sooner you can catch a blister, the better chance you have to prevent it from turning into a three-weeklong annoyance,” says Van Tilburg, who works at Providence Hood River Memorial Hospital Mountain Clinic in Oregon. If the blister develops while you’re playing and you don’t want to stop, cover it with a thin layer of first-aid tape (Band-Aids probably won’t stay in place during play and thick material can bunch up and cause friction that can lead to more blisters). If the blister is on your hand, you might have to wrap the tape around your wrist to keep it in place.
“Never pop a blister,” Van Tilburg says. The fluid inside has immune cells that help with healing, he explains, so opening the blister slows that process. You also risk introducing bacteria that could lead to infection. If the bubble bursts on its own, clean it as described in the following section on scrapes and cuts. For the next few days, leave the blister exposed to air as much as possible. If the blister is on your foot and you need to wear shoes, cover it with a piece of moleskin or a special blister bandage like GlacierGel Blister and Burn Dressings, which are waterproof bandages that have a layer of cooling gel. And while you may have heard that duct tape can be used as a blister bandage, Van Tilburg advises against this remedy because the tape isn’t hypoallergenic and could ultimately cause more irritation than the blister itself.
The injury: Scrape or cut
How to treat it: On a scrape, squirt a solution of baby shampoo mixed with water, making sure to rinse out any debris. “We use baby shampoo in the ER because it doesn’t sting and does a good job of cleaning
surface wounds,” Van Tilburg says. Next, add a layer of antibiotic ointment and, if the scrape is bleeding, cover it with a bandage or a piece of sterile gauze and first-aid tape.
For a cut, stop the bleeding by placing clean gauze or a cloth over the wound and applying direct pressure. If the bleeding won’t stop, the cut may need to be closed with stitches or a type of “super glue” that seals cuts. If the bleeding has stopped, treat the cut as you would an abrasion, but use a sterile saline solution to clean it since there’s more risk of infection with a deeper cut. Then cover it with a butterfly bandage or gauze and first-aid tape. After you’re done playing, leave the wound open to speed healing. Even surface wounds can get infected, so if the area becomes red, warm to the touch, and swollen after 24 to 72 hours, see your doctor because you might need antibiotics. Slather the area with sunscreen when you’re outside for two to three months after. “Scrapes scar really easily,” Van Tilburg says. “Using sunscreen diligently will prevent a permanent reminder.”
The injury: Sprained ankle, knee or wrist
How to treat it: Break open an ice pack and hold it on the injured joint for 10–15 minutes. Next, wrap the injured area in an ACE bandage, making the bandage snug, but not so tight that it cuts off circulation. Finally, elevate your leg or arm so it’s above your heart for another 15 minutes. (The acronym for these four steps is RICE: Rest, Ice, Compression and Elevation.) If there is significant swelling, if you heard a pop or crack, or you cannot move the joint normally after 15 minutes of rest, see a physician within 24 hours since you may have a more severe injury. “If you ignore a minor fracture it can become major, possibly even requiring surgery,” Van Tilburg says.
