Rugby

Under 19 Cheetah's Practice

Free-State Stadium

University of the Free State

Main entrance to UFS

 

 





Classy Pedestrian Crossings

President Steyn

Administration Building

 

 

 

Buildings where the ANC was founded

 

Student Union

 

President Steyn Residence Hall

 

Courtyard of President Steyn Residence

 

My room

Where "shooting the sh%#" takes on a whole different meaning

8 June 2013

            To start off our first weekend in Bloemfontein, Jaclyn and I attended the WildsKOSfees. The ticket cost $25 and gave you access to eat and drink a smorgasbord of South African wild game and wine. That’s the definition of heaven for hunting enthusiast and meat lovers around the world! It was incredible. There were over 240 dishes of meat, including blesbok, eland, red hartebeest, black and blue wildebeest, springbok, warthog, crocodile, gemsbok, and kudu (my all time favorite meat in the world!). The event was held on a farm about 30 minutes from the university. We arrived at 11am and were given our own wine tasting glass as we walked on to the grounds. There was also live music (they played Neil Diamond’s “Sweet Caroline” and Johnny Cash’s “Walk the Line”), horseback riding, tractor-pulled wagon rides, and a favorite past time of South African farmers where you had a competition to see who could spit a pellet of kudu droppings the farthest. Can you say AWESOME?!!!!  We stayed until 6:30pm when our stomachs were just about to explode and the wine ran out.

What are they feeding kids down here?!

7 June 2013

            Today was amazing to be able to hang out with the team physio, Christiene for the Cheetah’s rugby team. Christiene is incredibly knowledgeable and super cool. We met her out on the university rugby fields where she was strapping some players before their practice. We learned how to strap for shin-splints, quadriceps, and ankles. Once practice began, Christiene informed us that this was the under 19 team for the Cheetah’s and that three players were skilled enough to make it to the Springboks one day. I could not believe how big some of these guys were for being under 19 years old. It was evident that rugby was a way of life, and that these guys were born and raised in the gym. The practice lasted about an hour and within that time three players had to come to the sidelines because of injuries, adding to the four players that were sitting out before practice began. The new casualties included two sprained ankles and one sprained quadriceps.

            After practice, Christiene drove us to her office at the Free-State Stadium (Home of the Cheetah’s). Once at the office, we attended to the three newly injured players, which all required ultrasound and electrode therapy to relax the muscles and sooth the pain in the injured areas. We also witness the very unfortunate case of a rugby player who had been at the peak of his game, having played in two World Cups as the captain of the Springboks, when he tore his Achilles tendon. Due to a series of extremely unfortunate events, this man underwent five surgeries on his Achilles tendon. When we saw him, he had been out of his boot for two weeks and the tendon was very swollen. Christiene showed us how to align the collagen fibers of the tendon, so as to aid in the proper healing of the tendon. Interestingly, we also had a professional soccer player (midfielder) from the Orlando Pirates in Johannesburg. He was treated for tendonosis of the Achilles tendon, with some swelling of the sheath. Additionally, his popliteus muscle was very stiff and was needled so as to relax it. The needles that are used in this therapy are the same as those used in acupuncture but the method of use is completely different. The needles are inserted along the length of the muscle so as to cause twitching contractions in the muscle. Once the muscle stops twitching, then it relaxes completely and stretching can be performed to keep the muscle loose.

            After attending to her patients, Christiene showed us on to the field at the Free-State Stadium and gave us a brief tour. The stadium only seated 46,000 people, which made it one of the smallest in the country. Although it was small, it was very cool to walk on the field and picture yourself in front of thousands of cheering South Africans.    

Learning the ways of the South Africans

5-6 June 2013

            Our mornings were spent shadowing three 4^th year physiotherapist (fisio) students, spending each morning with a different group of students. Much of the issues we found in patients were due to incorrect posture and overuse. One woman had neck pain, isolated to the C2-C3 vertebra, which was also causing pain and stiffness in the right trapezius muscles. The fisio student who was attending to her taught us about the Pain Gate Theory which uses electrodes to stimulate larger neuron fibers used for tactile detection so that the smaller neuron fibers that detect pain are blocked from stimulation. This effectively “closes the gate” on pain so the patient feels relieved. A military man from the nearby base came in to loosen up and activate the muscles in his calves and hamstrings before playing squash. Another man who had surgery the previous week on his biceps tendon and rotator cuff came in complaining of trapezius pain due to the sling he must wear, and he practiced some pendulum exercises to begin regaining motion in his shoulder. During the time between patients, we had very interesting talks about our childhood rivalries with siblings, music, sports, and the differences between college life in the US and South Africa. There are not many campus organizations outside of residence life and athletics in South Africa, mainly because politics, language, and religion are very polarizing subjects that cause much conflict. Moreover, the academic curriculum of South African universities is much more jam-packed than that of the US. For example, the three fisio students we met today have averaged 35 hours of class time per week for the past four years (not including studying or research); therefore, they would not have much time outside of academics to participate in extracurricular activities even if they were available.

             Jaclyn and I would go to the clinic for the afternoons to shadow more office visits. We met a university rugby player who had been diagnosed with a concussion during the previous night’s game. Interestingly, he was very passionate about one day coming to the US to hike the entire Appalachian Trail. We also met a man with a minor shoulder aggravation who plans to swim from Cape Town to Robben Island and back the Wednesday of next week. Just a measly 24 kilometer (15 mile) swim through freezing cold, Great White infested waters. We are interacting with some truly incredible people every single day. It is amazing how every day just gets better and better.               

WHERE DID I PUT THOSE KEYS???

4 June 2013 

            So I head over to Jaclyn’s apartment this morning to meet her before walking to the Sports Medicine building to being our first day of our internship. When I arrive, I politely knock on the glass sliding-door and am soon greeted by an obviously flustered Jaclyn. “Are you ready to go?” I asked, to hear her faint reply through the door, “I can't find my key!” Jaclyn had been given a key to lock the padlock on her sliding door, but had lost it within 48 hours. Now she was locked INSIDE her apartment and I couldn’t help but laugh, which I knew would make things so much better. For some reason Jaclyn didn’t find the situation as amusing. “Well… see you later,” is all I could say standing there helpless, although I reassured her that as soon as I reached a faculty person I would have them make a call and get help to her. I felt like Lassie trying to explain what had happened and where Jaclyn was in captivity, as a faculty person at the International office gave me a blank stare as she tried to comprehend the bizarre situation. In the end, Jaclyn had her key the whole time but it had managed to become hidden under a pair of shoes in her closet. We all had a big laugh; well Jaclyn didn’t until much later, and continued on with the first day of the internship, running only a few minutes behind schedule.

            Sanmari was our escort for the day, showing us to the Sport Medicine building, medical library, and Physiotherapy clinic. She was a wonderful person who was very knowledgeable about the campus and kept us laughing. It was also great to finally meet Dr. Louis Holtzhausen, who is the department head of Sports Medicine, served as the Springbok’s (National Rugby Team) team doctor, and was selected to serve as the doctor for the South African Olympic Team for the 2012 London Olympics. He gave us a brief overview of the next four weeks and assured us that customizing our experiences to our likings was no problem; all we needed to do was ask.

            Dr. Marlene, who also works in the Sports Medicine Department and is a joy to talk with, helped us to pick topics related to sports medicine, on which to conduct research over the course of the internship. I chose to research the causes behind exercise related cramping, which studies have shown is due to more than dehydration. Another topic of great interest was platelet rich plasma injections (PRP), which are used to promote natural healing and more long term solutions for injuries to tendons.

            With our research topics in mind, we headed over to the medical library where Mrs. Elma, the librarian, introduced us to using the library’s databases and gave us a quick tour of the building. Afterwards, we headed over to the physiotherapy clinic where were able to shadow Dr. Holtzhausen and experience a platelet rich plasma (PRP) injection on a patient with tennis elbow. First blood is drawn from the patient and is then centrifuged at low rpm for 8 minutes, so as to isolate the neutrophils, platelets, and plasma (containing inflammatory proteins). PRP is then injected into the site of the injured tendon, causing an acute inflammatory response at the site. This allows for loss of function, allowing the body to actually heal the tendon, rather than masking pain with cortisone shots and further deteriorating the tendon. By allowing the body to heal the tendon properly, the tendon will remain healthy longer.

            Later we went to the gymnasium and observed students our age who were biokineticists. Biokineticists differ from physiotherapists in that physiotherapists work to relieve pain from the patient and regain range of motion. When the patient reaches the biokineticist, they are pain free and work on regaining their strength to that which they had before the operation. One patient in particular was astonishing to meet. He was an Olympic runner and long jumper for South Africa, and he also coached the Springbok’s from 1985-1986. All his years of running and jumping had deteriorated the cartilage of his left knee, which was his planting foot for jumping, and he had undergone surgery to clean up his knee.