There are many factors that cause an injury. Some are individual, some are related to environment as to where and how you play, and others are dependent on the game you play which are broadly divided into contact sports, racquet games, power sports and others. Cricket falls in the ‘others’ category.
What Philip Hughes suffered was an unorthodox injury. He was wearing a helmet but still got hit in an area that was not covered, in the lower back of the head. There is no set pattern to ball behaviour. Every profession has its own hazards and it’s no different for sportspersons. It’s unfortunate that Hughes had to die so young, because of an on-field injury. It’s an unfortunate accident. How much can safety gear protect you? The thyroid cartilage, which is the Adam’s Apple in common man’s terms, is another part of the body that remains unprotected by cricket gear. A hit there can cause a fatal injury. If you play sideways, by the book, the shoulders will normally protect the neck but in an unorthodox situation like the one involving Hughes, the area is exposed to dangerous balls.
However, people need to be little more cautious. Emphasis on protective gear is important since childhood. I’ve seen young players ignore wearing helmets and abdomen guards at net practice sessions, which is so dangerous. Just because they’re not playing a match, they tend to take it easy. It’s time officials made the safety equipment mandatory even in non-match situations.
Over the years, the dynamics of sport have changed. Those were the days of Bjorn Borg and Pete Sampras. Look at Rafael Nadal now; he’s all power and strength, which is not a good sign. No wonder Rafa keeps breaking down every now and then. Not just tennis, all the games have got faster, which means the demand for agility and fitness levels have gone up manifold.
That’s why preparation for the game becomes very important. That keeps your mind and body coordination tuned. For example, if an athlete does not warm up properly by limbering up the joints and stretching, he misses out on the neuromuscular coordination. Every practice session should involve proper warming up and cooling down.
Then, there is hyper hydration, which is drinking too much water. Players who drink too much water think that will wash out the body. There is no washing mechanism in the body. Some players who consume too much of water, for a longer duration of many months and years, keep losing their salt content in their bodies, which can lead to hypometrimic cardiomyopathy, which also causes problem in the heart muscle.
We also need to inculcate medical training at sports. School and college kids take to a particular game and start playing it, without knowledge of any inherent medical issues they may have. Some people can have certain coronary artery abnormalities or some sort of cardiomyopathy, which results in sudden deaths in many cases. Some children also have heart valve defects. These players get through the training sessions and matches but upon a sudden spurt in exertion, can die instantly. This can happen to footballers and long distance runners.
In light of this, when one is trying to pursue sport seriously, one should undergo a medical screening test. There are so many youngsters playing but I wonder how many have been screened medically. The tests only cost '2,000 and could save precious life while people spend much more on just buying sports gear.
I have screened a lot of budding cricketers and table tennis players in Hyderabad and discovered that they are seriously deficient in vitamin D and minerals. That is the state of affairs. Sport is becoming popular but injury preventive awareness is at a low. There is a lot to do than just playing. Preparation, planning, screening, monitoring time to time are very important. Please do not ignore this, and enjoy the game.
(Dr Choudhary, MD, DLift, Phd, has been the team doctor for Switzerland ice hockey, England cricket, Indian hockey, athletics and boxing sides besides providing conditioning, nutrition and injury prevention programmes to sportspersons such as former tennis World No.1 Martina Hingis, Olympic rowing gold medallist Xeno Muler of Switzerland, cricketers Mike Gatting, VVS Laxman, Adam Gilchrist, Andrew Symonds and Olympic athlete P. T. Usha)
(As told to Moses Kondety)
