Client took a fall

[chris p]

I'm just out of school and I could use some advice on how to deal with the following situation:

A client of mine took a bad fall today while using a treadmill. Based on her account this evening on the phone, she dropped her glasses and fell on her side when she tried to pick them up. She has some abrasions on her leg and arm, sort of a "rug burn" from the treadmill. It was still on when she fell so she slid backward off of it. She thinks she may have hit her head as well.

She is fine, nothing is broken or sprained, but she is anticipating being very sore tomorrow and would like a massage after work. It will have been about 24 hours since the incident by that time.

What type of techniques are most indicated in this situation? Is 24 hours enough time to wait before massage?

I was thinking of beginning with some ROM tests and stretching to see if she is experiencing any limitations. Then maybe some broad stripping to her tolerance to loosen up the fascia and sore areas.

Any thoughts? I know this isn't a lot to go on, but I won't know anymore until I hear from her tomorrow. About her: She is 36, healthy and in good physical condition. She has a desk job and spends a lot of time sitting. The last two times I worked on her, she was in for b/l neck and shoulder pain. I did anterior (scalenes) and posterior neck work as well as upper traps. She found relief in CFF on the suboccipitals.

 

[|Gordon| |Freeman|]

i've been under the impression that one should wait 36 hours after an incident to massage. i believe it's the time that indicates the condition is acute to a condition that is considered chronic.

 

[Pompal 09.]

It depends on the severity of the fall. I've also fallen off a treadmill -- OUCH! I ended up with some bruises and the "treadmill burns", too. I had no injuries beyond that, and believe a massage would have been fine.

I think the important thing is to assess for injuries, and be very careful of the areas that actually struck the ground during the fall. Ask her about bruises and swelling. Avoid those areas completely at this point and suggest home treatments of ice instead. Also recommend topical creams like Arnica or Traumeel -- they can really speed up the healing process. (They're both sold in health food stores.) Be careful of her head -- you don't want to massage where it hit the ground, since there's likely to be hidden bruising there that would be sensitive to touch. You can massage more deeply any muscles that tensed up during the fall but weren't injured themselves. Then, in following weeks, you can work more specifically on the areas that hit the ground.

Hope that helps.