a SPRAIN vs STRAIN

It amazed me recently that not many people knew the differnece between a strain and a sprain. Some did know they were different but didnt know how. Here's a little spiel on the very basics of common injuries that everyone has or, if they havent already, will have at some point in their life.
 
These type of injuries are quite common and are often cause for a great deal of worry for athletes. The pain can be quite severe and mistaken for something more serious. However, ive seen these terms thrown around a lot and used interchangeably. However . How is a strain different from a sprain you say? Well here is basic differences between the two:
 
Strain: - To strain a muscle or tendon means that it has been twisted, pulled or torn. These are often more painful that sprains. The degree of severity varies from the mild strain to a major tear. However, tears are usually assigned their own category hence we will leave them out of this thread.
 
Sprain: - When you sprain something, it means that there has been a tear or stretch of a ligament (as opposed to muscle or tendon).
 
Now, here a lot of people get confused. Isnt a tendon or ligament the same thing?? No, theyre different although perform the similar functions - anchoring one thing to another. A LIGAMENT is a bit of connective tissue that stabilize and support the joints - joining one joint to another.  TENDONS are also fibrous connective tissue however they attach muscle to bone. Not bone to bone.
 
How do you know if youve sprained or strained?
 
A sprain is due to trauma where a joint is bumped out of position and the LIGAMENTS are forced to overstretch and in severe cases, rupture or tear. This is often seen in basketball players who after landing funny on an ankle or when going to cross over and they 'roll' their ankle.
 
A strain on the other hand, where the muscle/tendon is twisted or pulled as ive said above. Most strains are muscular. For e.g Back strains such as those seen in basketballers or when 'you use your back too much during squats' in the gym and are sore for a few days and eventually recover. The other common types of strains are hamstring strains that often result from kicking activities or once again jumping to dunk.
 
While all of this is nothing new to some people and is considered very basic, a lot of others (including myself 4 years ago) had no idea that a sprain and strain were different, nor did i no how they were different. So next time you hear one of your mates say he strained his ankle as he landed badly on it after jumping (Ive heard this a million times), you can correct them with your new-found knowledge. ( i take no responsibility if you get beaten up for trying to sound like a smart-ass)

lol! cute!

"Muscles strain and ligaments sprain" - ISSA Complete Fitness Manual; p 640

Great post Lynx.

Marc C. David - NGA CPT
Author of NoBull Bodybuilding
www.nobullbodybuilding.com