If you have an orthopedic injury, your doctor may recommend heat therapy. For injuries such as muscle strains, torn ligaments, and bruises, it's generally best to apply an ice pack first to reduce swelling and relieve pain.

Arthroscopic surgery is used for treating a variety of problems, especially those of the knee, hip, elbow, shoulder, and ankle. Arthroscopy (R-throw-scaw-pee) has been made possible by technological advances in fiberoptics, instrumentation, and energy sources.

The stress on your bones from an accident or injury can sometimes result in a fracture, also known as a broken bone. The immediate first aid needed depends upon the severity.

If you've dislocated a bone, you can usually tell just by looking at it. Dislocations are very serious injuries in which the bone moves out of its proper alignment.

'Shin splints' is a term often used to describe pain caused by unusual or repetitive stress to the lower leg. It involves the two muscles that run from the knee to the ankle and the side of the foot.

Dehydration occurs when more water is lost from the body's tissues than is consumed. This may occur during strenuous activities, especially in hot, humid weather, when sweating and loss of essential body salts can lead to this condition.

Knees and elbows are used frequently, and injury to them is common. The human knee is the largest single joint in the body, and because it's virtually unprotected, it's vulnerable to injury.

Fractures, or breaks, in a bone are caused when the physical force exerted on the bone is stronger than the bone itself. Most people have at least one fracture during their lives, but the risk of a fracture partly depends on age.

Heat exhaustion, not to be confused with heat stroke, normally results from dehydration leading to an increase in core body temperature and is most common during the heat of the summer.

Cardiovascular fitness is a key component to a healthy life. To strengthen your heart perform exercises that increase the flow of blood to the heart for an extended period of time.

Your hamstring is a belt of three muscles that run along the back of your thigh from buttock to knee and connects to the bones of your lower leg. These muscles are involved in almost every move your body makes, and are subject to great stress, especially in professional athletes and dancers.

The knee comprises many parts, which make it vulnerable to various types of injuries. The knee is the largest joint in the body, and it's the most often treated area by orthopedic surgeons.

Injuries can decrease the amount of time you can spend in leisure activities, lower your fitness, downgrade competitive performance, and lead to long-term health problems, such as arthritis.

More than 10 million sports injuries occur each year, most of which are due to traumatic injury or overuse of muscles or joints. Recognizing the symptoms of an injury before it becomes worse may help you recover more quickly.

When a muscle is hard at work and contracts with great force and stays contracted, refusing to stretch out again, it's called a muscle cramp. Muscle cramps can affect you in many areas, including a charley horse in your calf during the middle of the night or a stinging pain in your side.

Like any other part of your body, muscles can become fatigued and injured. A sprain is an injury to a ligament or tendon that supports a joint and is often caused by a sudden twist, particularly in the ankles, wrists, and knees.

If you don't receive enough rest in a training program, then regeneration of the muscles can't occur and performance reaches a plateau, and if this process continues performance will begin to decline.

The number of injuries that occur during racket sports can be reduced with the proper conditioning and training, choice of equipment, and care of the court.

Running injuries are common for both amateur and professional athletes and can affect many parts of the body, not just the lower extremities. Athletes who over-train may suffer from common injuries, such as strained muscles, inflamed tendons, bone-stress fractures, shin splints, foot pain, or joint soreness.

A separated shoulder, not to be confused with shoulder dislocation, often occurs during a fall on the apex or tip of the shoulder, resulting in a tear (tehr) of the ligament that holds the collarbone to the top of the shoulder.

Most sports-related injuries occur from the overuse or misuse of a muscle or joint, but there are methods that can help reduce the risk of injury. Warming up before exercising loosens the muscles and may prevent muscle pulls.

A sprain is an injury to a ligament or tendon that supports a joint and is often caused by a twist, particularly in the areas of the ankles, wrists, and knees.

Sprains, strains, and bruises are considered to be among the most common injuries to the soft tissues of your body due to sports and physical-fitness activity.

A strain is an injury to a muscle that helps support the bones, usually located in your foot or leg. In many cases, strains occur when a muscle or tendon is overused or forced, but surgical repair is rarely required.

Tennis elbow is localized pain caused by repetitive stress on the muscles that are connected to the small bone known as the lateral epicondylitis (ep-eh-con-dih-LYE-tis) on the outside of the elbow.

Warming up and cooling down are essential parts of a fitness program, because the risk of injury is greatly reduced when the temperature of your muscles are raised before exercise.

The RICE (rice) system is a method of four steps used in the treatment of minor sports injuries. RICE is an acronym that stands for rest, ice, compression, and elevation.