Massage & Bodywork

JULY | AUGUST 2022

Issue link: https://www.massageandbodyworkdigital.com/i/1471270

Contents of this Issue

Navigation

Page 30 of 100

28 m a s s a g e & b o d y wo r k j u l y/a u g u s t 2 0 2 2 Understanding Ligament Function and Injury TECHNIQUE By Whitney Lowe CLINICAL EXPLORATIONS Massage therapists need to understand potential injuries or dysfunctions in the musculoskeletal soft tissues to provide the best treatment possible for their clients. Here, we'll explore the unique characteristics of ligaments and how those characteristics show up in a number of common ligament problems. LIGAMENT STRUCTURE AND FUNCTION The primary function of ligament tissue is to connect adjacent bones and establish skeletal stability. Ligaments are dense connective tissue structures composed of elastin and collagen. Elastin provides a degree of pliability and f lexibility, while collagen gives the tissue tensile strength. Ligaments are designed primarily to withstand tensile loads along the direction of their fiber orientation. Ligament fibers are oriented primarily in a longitudinal direction to provide the greatest resistance to tensile stress. However, forces acting on joints can come from multiple directions, so some ligament fibers are also oriented in other directions. These cross fibers allow the ligament to have some f lexibility and strength in other directions. Ligament tissue also makes up a significant amount of the fibrous capsule around synovial joints. LIGAMENT SPRAIN A sprain is the most common ligament injury and is caused by excess tensile (pulling) load on the ligament. Sprains are categorized as first, second, or third degree. Identifying ligament damage relies on understanding the ligament's location and the motions it is designed to resist. This information, combined with an analysis of the forces the body was subjected to when the potential injury occurred, will help determine the injury degree. In many cases, it is moderately easy to infer the ligament's function from the location. For example, the medial collateral ligament of the knee resists force aiming from the lateral to the medial side of the knee (also called a valgus force). With other The load-length relationship with elastic and plastic deformation of ligaments. 1 KEY POINTS • Ligaments are dense connective tissue structures composed of elastin that provides a degree of pliability and flexibility, and collagen that gives the tissue tensile strength. • A sprain is the most common ligament injury and is caused by excess tensile load.

Articles in this issue

Archives of this issue

view archives of Massage & Bodywork - JULY | AUGUST 2022