By Chris Williams, CycloneFanatic.com Publisher
Your expert injury report for Iowa State @ Texas Tech courtesy of the Iowa Clinic.
Iowa State escaped last week’s loss to Texas A&M without many new injuries. Our weekly "Doc Spot" segment with the Iowa Clinic is a little bit lighter this week, but we’ve gone out of our way to investigate what’s going on with Steele Jantz and Shontrelle Johnson. Enjoy.
Q: In his press conference last Monday, head coach Paul Rhoads announced that running back Shontrelle Johnson is likely out for the season due to a neck injury. Johnson went down in the Texas game and Rhoads said that Iowa State’s medical staff is still undergoing testing to find out exactly what the injury is and how they will treat it. Going forward, what are the chances that this injury might affect Johnson after this season? What kind of testing do you suppose Iowa State is doing right now?
Robert Kerr, MD, Ph.D., The Iowa Clinic Neurological & Spinal Surgery Department says:
Obvious injuries such as a fracture to the bones of the neck or a disc rupture would easily have been identified and the treatment and prognosis clear.
More challenging to resolve is injury to the spinal cord – akin to a concussion or contusion with possible ligament instability. These injuries do require prolonged recovery – for a contusion usually 3 to 6 months, and avoidance of another injury is required before return to play.
Ligament instability also requires several months of recovery and then careful evaluation with dynamic imaging (flexion/extension).
The injury may involve the brachial plexus – bundles of nerve roots that supply the arms. Usually an EMG (nerve conduction study) can reveal the nature of the injury which can range from a nerve stretch that usually recovers in a few weeks to months, versus a nerve tear, which can result in a permanent injury.
These are complex and intricate injuries to diagnose, and treatment and prognosis is highly variable. Only the physicians treating and examining Shontrelle Johnson will be able to tell how long it will be until he is able to return to play safely and what treatments are required.
Q: With quarterback Steele Jantz no longer being in Iowa State’s starting lineup, he’ll have more time to rest the sprained foot that he suffered during week 3’s win over UConn. Assuming that it was a severe sprain and that he’ll now be able to rest it, any estimate on when he’ll be 100 percent again? Also, when it comes to throwing the football, obviously this injury isn’t to his arm, but how could a sprained foot impact the throwing ability of a quarterback in the Big 12.
A: Now that Steele Jantz isn’t in the starting lineup he will have more time to rehabilitate his injured foot. It may take months to become 100% but any time off that he can take it will help. His injured foot can certainly effect his throwing as a good stable base in important for an accurate throw.
Dr: Eric Barp (foot & ankle surgeon) says:
A: Now that Steele Jantz isn’t in the starting lineup he will have more time to rehabilitate his injured foot. It may take months to become 100% but any time off that he can take it will help. His injured foot can certainly effect his throwing as a good stable base in important for an accurate throw.
