What is a structural damage injury

Jose Bautista is back in the lineup for the Toronto Blue Jays because there was no structural damage in his wrist. He said:

It’s all about pain tolerance since there’s no structural damage. As long as you can tolerate the pain, I’m not going to make it any worse unless I do too much, too soon. I’ll let pain dictate what I can do, and hopefully two weeks is enough. I’m thinking it will be.

This got me thinking … I am unsure what structural damage is in an injury.

What is structural damage in a sports injury

The first thing I learned is that structural damage refers to the joints of the body. Most likely:

1. Knees
2. Elbows
3. Ankles

Each of the joints is comprised of many pieces and parts, but the structure is supported by tendons and ligaments. The bones are anchored by muscles, but the movement is allowed by tendons and ligaments.

When a tendon or ligament is damaged the ability to flex or pronate the joint is affected and the structure of the joint is affected. Hence, you have structural damage.

Why is structural damage so devastating

The key reason is that the joint’s ability to work is severely compromised. This affects:

1. Movement
2. Strength
3. Endurance

Your joint basically becomes useless.

How do you determine structural damage

Since the tendons and ligaments are fiber an MRI or ultrasound is used to determine the severity of the injury. There are also common symptoms:

1. Inflammation
2. Pain
3. Loss of range of motion

A medical professional is the only on who can determine if structural damage has occurred and the extent of it.

This is a good look at a knee showing damage in an MRI:

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