Which of the following is an example of an acute injury?

Which of the following is an example of an acute injury?

• A. Sprains
• B. Overuse injuries
• C. Chronic tendinopathy
• D. Osteoarthritis

Answer: (A)

Acute injuries start suddenly after a specific incident and have a rapid onset of symptoms like sharp pain, swelling, and immediate functional limitation. Sprains fit this pattern because they involve a sudden twist or impact that damages ligaments, such as rolling an ankle during activity. The other options describe injuries that develop over time from repetitive stress or degeneration—overuse injuries accumulate with repeated loading, chronic tendinopathy is a long-standing tendon issue, and osteoarthritis is a progressive degenerative joint condition. So the sprain is the clear example of an acute injury.

Acute injuries start suddenly after a specific incident and have a rapid onset of symptoms like sharp pain, swelling, and immediate functional limitation. Sprains fit this pattern because they involve a sudden twist or impact that damages ligaments, such as rolling an ankle during activity. The other options describe injuries that develop over time from repetitive stress or degeneration—overuse injuries accumulate with repeated loading, chronic tendinopathy is a long-standing tendon issue, and osteoarthritis is a progressive degenerative joint condition. So the sprain is the clear example of an acute injury.