Important: This page is general information, not medical advice. It does not recommend or prescribe any treatment. Always consult your doctor or pharmacist before starting, stopping or changing any medicine.
About Sports Injuries
Exercising is good for you, but sometimes you can injure yourself when you play sports or exercise. Accidents, poor training practices, or improper gear can cause them. Some people get hurt because they are not in shape. Not warming up or stretching enough can also lead to injuries.
The most common sports injuries are:
- Sprains and strains
- Knee injuries
- Swollen muscles
- Achilles tendon injuries
- Pain along the shin bone
- Rotator cuff injuries
- Fractures (broken bones)
- Dislocations
If you get hurt, stop playing. Continuing to play or exercise can cause more harm. Treatment often begins with the RICE (Rest, Ice, Compression, and Elevation) method to relieve pain, reduce swelling, and speed healing. Other possible treatments include pain relievers, keeping the injured area from moving, rehabilitation, and sometimes surgery.
It sits within Injuries and Wounds, Wellness and Lifestyle and Fitness and Exercise.
The lead U.S. institute for this subject is the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases.
When to speak to someone. Reading about a topic cannot tell you whether it applies to you. Speak to a doctor or pharmacist if symptoms are severe, sudden, getting worse, or simply not going away — and seek emergency care immediately for chest pain, breathing difficulty, sudden weakness or confusion, or a serious allergic reaction.
Research on Sports Injuries
606 studies areregistered for this condition on ClinicalTrials.gov, the U.S. National Library of Medicine's public registry. A selection is below — the links go straight to the registry entry, not to a summary of ours.
What a registered study does and does not mean. Registration means a study exists and has been declared publicly. It says nothing about whether the treatment being tested works, is safe, or is available to you. Many studies find no benefit — that is what research is for. Never seek out an experimental treatment on the strength of a registry entry alone.
Research currently under way
- Psychological Readiness and Return to Sport After ACL ReconstructionBiruni University
- FIFA 11+ in Young Female Volleyball PlayersAcibadem University
- Optimization of Adaptive Rowing SeatingVA Office of Research and Development
- Effects of Rotator Cuff Drills Versus Progressive Resistance Exercises on Chronic Rotator Cuff TendinopathyRiphah International University
- Efficacy of Ultrasound-Guided Percutaneous Electrolysis for Hip Pain in Male Ice Hockey PlayersVeronique Vidal
- ACL Mechanical Property Changes in Female Collegiate Basketball Players During a Competitive SeasonFu Jen Catholic University Hospital
Research already completed
- Respiration and Balance in Adolescent Volleyball PlayersIzmir Democracy University
- TRANSLATION, ADAPTATION, VALIDATION AND RELIABILITY OF ARABIC VERSION OF KERLAN-JOBE ORTHOPAEDIC CLINIC SHOULDER AND ELBOW SCORE IN EGYPTIAN SYMPTOMATIC OVERHEAD ATHLETESZiad Mohamed Mohamed Abdalla Haroun
- Neuromodulation of the Autonomic Nervous System in AthletesBakulev Scientific Center of Cardiovascular Surgery
- Comparison of Sports Anxiety, Sports Injury Anxiety, and Knowledge Levels Regarding Factors Causing Sports Injury in Individuals Who Regularly Engage in Conditioning Work With and Without a History of InjuryIstanbul Saglik Bilimleri University
- FIFA 11+ Warm-Up and Injury Risk Classification in Youth Amateur Soccer PlayersPamukkale University
- Eight-week Sports Injury Prevention ProgramPrincess Nourah Bint Abdulrahman University
Study data from ClinicalTrials.gov, a service of the U.S. National Library of Medicine. Retrieved 2026-07-30. Registry entries are supplied by study sponsors and investigators; ClinicalTrials.gov does not verify their scientific validity. PocketsInfo is not affiliated with, and not endorsed by, the NLM or the NIH.
Where to read more
Rather than paraphrase, we point you to the primary sources. Every link below is to a government health agency, a national institute or a recognised medical body — grouped by what you are trying to find out.
Start Here
- Sports InjuriesNational Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases
Prevention and Risk Factors
- Golf Injury PreventionAmerican Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons
- Sports Safety: MedlinePlus Health TopicNational Library of Medicine
Related Issues
- Exercise-Induced UrticariaAmerican Academy of Family Physicians
- Venous Thromboembolism and Marathon AthletesAmerican Heart Association
Statistics and Research
- Data on Sports and Recreation ActivitiesCenters for Disease Control and Prevention
- New Concussion Model for College Athletes May Help Predict Longer Recovery TimesNational Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering
Clinical Trials
- ClinicalTrials.gov: Athletic InjuriesNational Institutes of Health
Medical subject headings
Clinicians and researchers index this subject under Athletic Injuries. These are the terms to use when searching medical literature.
This page is built from the MedlinePlus health topic record for Sports Injuries, a service of the U.S. National Library of Medicine (NLM), National Institutes of Health. Information is from MedlinePlus.gov. PocketsInfo is not affiliated with, and is not endorsed by, the NLM or the NIH. Retrieved 30 July 2026.