What should a first-aid kit include for “patching”? how might a person maintain cardiovascular fitness when an arm or leg is injured? how should a person who was injured return to a fitness program? the acronym rice is used to remind people how to treat minor strains and pulls. what do these letters stand for?

A good answer should contain the following:

   Sterile dressings; sterile eye pads; sterile gauze bandages; assorted adhesive bandages; elastic bandages; wound-closure strips or butterfly closures for pulling wound edges together; tincture of benzoin for making adhesive bandages, wound-closure strips, and moleskin stick better.

   When there’s a lower-extremity injury, non-weight-bearing activities should be incorporated. Pool activities provide an excellent means for injury rehabilitation. Cycling also can positively stress the cardiorespiratory system. Of course, no activity should be undertaken without the approval of the medical staff.

   Once an injury has healed, the goal is to stay healthy and prevent re-injury. However, to prevent re-injury, you have to understand why or how the injury occurred in the first place. If the injury occurred because of inadequate conditioning, then attention should be paid to more conditioning. If an injury occurred because of poor form, then the focus should be on improving and mastering the correct technique. If the injury occurred because the person has musculoskeletal problems, such as lowerextremity misalignments or congenital abnormalities, that weren’t appropriately supported through the use of braces or orthotics, then the use and condition of those devices should be evaluated. If an injury can’t be explained and seems to have “just happened,” then the person should continue with a maintenance rehabilitation program three days per week that includes exercises and activities that aided in his or her recovery and return to fitness.

   Rest, Ice, Compression, Elevation