Sports Injuries in Motorsport Racing
The race weekend between the 30th June to the 2nd July had drivers spend more time in their cars than usual due to the Sprint shoot-out and Sprint race on top of the regular practice and Qualifying sessions. This got us thinking about the various injuries that people participating in motor sport injuries acquire and how some of the treatment we provide at Goodall Healthcare Group follow the same principles.
A study in the early 2000s highlighted the various Musculoskeletal concerns that come with a professional and amateur career in motorsport.
These included ‘upper extremity disorders’ such as carpal tunnel syndrome, cubital tunnel syndrome and scapholunate pain. As the sport has developed, the use of a vibration absorption pad and the use of the semi-automatic gear change levers have helped eliminate these issues. The FIA are making changes constantly to the sport to ensure the health and safety of the drivers are a priority.
However, these disorders plague the average driver on a daily basis!
This is where GHG comes in.
We have been treating conditions such as carpal tunnel syndrome since conception. With an appropriate combination of manual therapy in which soft tissue massage, carpal bone mobilisation and median nerve mobilisation helps to ease symptoms. In combination, our use of radial shockwave therapy and a tailored exercise programme allows us to conservatively manage this condition and hopefully prevent our patients having to take a surgical route.
However, this isn’t where concerns in motorsport stop.
Chronic exposure to vibration is also a major cause of back pain for F1 drivers. Whilst a reduction in the stiffness of suspension elements provided some degree of relief from the vibration, many drivers still find a lot of pain in their cervical and lumbar spine. This was most apparent for the Mercedes drivers, George Russel & Lewis Hamilton at the start of the 2023 season where porpousing was an issue. Lewis Hamilton did end up with this complaint consistently during the season. Again, GHG has extensive experience with dealing with spinal concerns. Through our comprehensive team of Sports and Exercise Medics, Osteopaths and Physiotherapists specialising in spinal mobilisation through manipulative therapies and the introduction of our shockwave therapies and laser therapy, we can ensure that your daily activities are not affected by back pain.
Generally, the way our experts work at Goodall Healthcare Group is very similar to clinicians working in motorsport. We follow a structured and methodological approach and integrate our services with non-clinically trained service providers such as personal trainers for further rehabilitation and talking therapists to ensure adequate psychological support during recovery, much the same as the recovery process for a pro-driver.