Physical therapy for injuries from electric scooters

There’s an electric scooter parked outside of our office right now. I'm looking at it longingly through the door...and somebody just checked it out and rode away. It looks fun, but as physical therapists it’s hard for us to ignore the potential for injury!

Electric scooters are popular in the Washington, DC, Maryland and Northern Virginia metro areas and hospital emergency rooms are reporting a surge in injuries as a result. With some injured riders unable to rely on insurance to cover their injuries, the stakes are high to avoid injuries and treat them in the most cost effective way possible.

The most common injuries from e-scooters are concussions, broken bones, and sprains or dislocations of ankles, wrists, elbows or shoulders. Because every accident is unique, first determine whether you need to go to an emergency room for acute care. If your injuries are acute or you have lacerations, a physician specializing in trauma or wound care will be your first step in recovery. In some instances you may think that you are okay, but lingering pain can be a sign that you should get an x-ray.

For minor injuries, try to rest the injured area, splint it if movement causes pain and keep it elevated. Current research shows that ice might slow healing, but it can still be helpful with pain. If the injuries are more serious, you might need physical therapy.

Physical therapy can speed up your recovery. Here at Rose, we can help rehabilitation for:

• Concussions or vestibular injuries that affect your sense of balance.
• Bone breaks that could need rehabilitation after immobilization, especially to address muscle atrophy or imbalances following removal of your cast or brace.
• Sprains that are not healing on their own.
• Muscle contusions from the impact of falling.
• Dislocations of ankles, wrists, elbows or shoulders.

If you are in acute pain after an accident or need wound care, please head to the nearest emergency room. If you are at the point of considering physical therapy, give Rose Physical Therapy Group a call to get your treatments started at either our Farragut Square office downtown or our Capitol Riverfront office near the Navy Yard metro and Nationals baseball park.

Also, please wear a helmet and other safety gear. It could save your life or save you from needing ours or any other medical services.