Category: Sports Health

Sports Injuries Explained

There are several specific types of injuries that are particularly associated with sports and it is especially vital to understand the various injuries so that the appropriate treatment can be sought as soon as possible. Quick treatment for most injuries can really reduce the amount of time it takes to heal as well as the expense associated with treatment, which makes it especially important to determine an injury quickly and begin the recovery process.

Acute This type of injury is usually associated with suddenly occurring, and often being associated with bruises, fractures, broken bones, blood, ligament strain or breakage and even spinal cord injuries. The exact type of injury is not as important as the classification. Acute injuries require immediate medical treatment to help reduce the pain, as well as begin the treatment process.

Some acute injuries such as those associated with sprains and strains need to be bandaged and splinted to prevent further damage to the body and aid in healing. In addition, eye injuries must be carefully treated once the eyes are carefully cleaned to avoid any further damage. Typically, acute injuries are the result of being hit with a ball, hit by another player, or even falling while playing. Additional ways acute injuries occur are possible, and not all injuries are the result of another player on the field.

Overuse Injuries These injuries typically occur due to extended repetition while engaged in an activity. This can occur in adults or children and while it is possible to minimize this injury through exercise and conditioning, it generally cannot be entirely avoided. Athletes who play sports a lot do tend to experience some form of overuse injury at some point.

Some examples of overuse injuries include swimmers shoulder, little league elbow, shin splits and spondylolysis. Each type of injury is typically associated with continuous repetition but most especially in younger children. Plenty of exercises and strength training will usually help to tone and condition the muscles to avoid the problems and injuries associated with the repetition of sports.

To help really avoid overuse injuries it is advisable to always warm up carefully before playing, always ensure you are using appropriate equipment that fits properly and also try to limit the number of sports you play at once. For example, try to avoid being involved in more than one activity per season as this can help strain the muscles and joints much faster.

Reinjury This is the final type of injury that is common amongst athletes. This most often occurs when an athlete pushes recovery to return to playing sports again before they are fully healed. Most athletes who have reinjury problems tend to return to sports before getting the approval of their doctor; however, it is possible on rare occasions that the doctor will make a mistake. Returning to the sport before the injury has fully healed can cause the same injury to progress, and can also cause additional injuries depending on the circumstances surrounding the reinjury.

The best way to avoid a reinjury is to carefully allow your body to fully heal upon becoming injured. By following the instructions that the doctor recommends, as well as carefully and slowly re-entering the sports field after recovering from an injury you can greatly reduce the risk of a reinjury rather than making yourself susceptible to another injury so quickly.

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Reasons for Sports Medicine

There are numerous sports that are played all around the world by a wide range of people. Ensuring that everyone is in the best health possible and sports related injuries are treated properly has created a huge need for sports medicine. While it may seem almost trivial to devote an entire practice of doctors to sports medicine there are numerous reasons why it is a wise decision to make.

Rather than simply working with doctors who are not widely trained in the specific injuries that can occur from sports related injuries it is possible to work with a sports medicine doctor. These doctors are specially trained in working with athletes to improve strength, as well as help injuries heal quickly and with as few long-term effects as possible.

Many athletes are injured each year, and often by specializing in sports medicine, the highly trained doctors can gather information and ideas about how to help prevent the injuries from occurring as well as how to help the injuries heal as quickly as possible. Working with a typical doctor will almost always result in a healed injury but it can take much longer, and depending upon the type of injury can result in your athletic career being over. The job of a sports medicine doctor is to ensure that through appropriate treatment, strength building, and diagnostics that you are not left sitting on the sidelines.

Advances in modern medicine have made it possible to narrow down how potential injuries can occur. It is a well-known fact that some sports are tougher on the body than others are, however this inability to all doctors to distinguish what the most serious injuries are often leads them to treating the minor injuries first. A sports medicine doctor is trained to focus on the most pressing injuries first and then worry about those that are not as important. This means if you have an injury to your knee that can affect all of your movement as well as walking on a permanent level they are going to focus more time on your knee rather than the sprained ankle you may have as well.

While the idea of sports medicine seems to be solely related to sports and athletes many dancers find relief from sports medicine doctors as well. Because dancing particularly ballet, jazz and modern are not considered sports some are confused about what benefits a sports medicine doctor can offer. However, if you consider that dancing is a very high stress activity that places great amounts of pressure and strain on your body it makes perfect sense to see a sports medicine doctor. Whenever a dancer sustains an injury while doing Pointe work or practicing for a performance, they are almost always referred by the dance master to a sports medicine doctor to help speed the recovery process.

Aside from just being a pricy specialty there are so many benefits to using sports medicine doctors that many athletes simply will not use a standard doctor unless they are forced to. The added knowledge and experience that sports medicine training provides to doctors is almost unmatched in terms of treating injuries both with and without surgical means. Looking beyond the initial injury and treating the overall cause as well as the injury is one of the biggest goals and helping all athletes return to full strength is a much needed benefit.

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Questions to Ask When Selecting Your Sports Medicine Doctor

Just as cars are not created equally, and neither are sports shoes there are some rather large differences between sports medicine doctors. The good news is this creates huge amounts of diversity; the bad news is that this can create numerous problems with finding someone who is well qualified to treat sports related injuries and help prevent injuries from occurring. To help you find the best sports doctor to help you meet your needs, use these questions as a guideline when you are interviewing doctors.

You should first ask your doctor how long they have been treating athletes. This should be at least several years if you are looking for experience, do not expect someone with less than 3 years of experience to be very helpful. If you decide to use a doctor new to the field, be aware that they should be cheaper and willing to work closely with you.

It is also wise to ask your doctor if they are currently the official team physician for any teams in your area. If they say yes, ask what teams so that you can contact the coach for a reference. Remember, if the coach does not give a positive reference that is still an excellent opportunity of information. Find out exactly why they do not recommend the doctor you are considering so that you can gather as many facts as possible.

Ask your potential doctor if they are a member of any special organizations such as the American Osteopathic Academy of Sports Medicine. Memberships into these groups typically require credentials to be verified in order for acceptance, this helps to keep only the better doctors amongst membership ranks.

You should also ask if your doctor has attended any specialized training courses. Some examples are the American College of Sports Medicine team physician training course as well as the course that is offered by the US Olympic Committee. If they have not attended any special programs this is not necessarily a bad thing, but it is worth noting for your own piece of mind.

A very important question that you should ask is what percentage of the practice is pertaining to sports medicine. Unless the doctor is a sports medicine specialist, you should not expect to hear 100% and even if they are a specialist, they are unlikely to really have a 100% level. Most practices are as low as only 30%

Ask if the doctor has any particular specialties. For example, there are doctors who specialize in orthopedic surgery, as well as various other medical fields. If you are just looking for a basic sports medicine doctor then often choosing a family practice or even an internal medicine doctor is the best decision. From the primary doctor that you choose you can receive referrals to other doctors as they become necessary.

Your final consideration should be looking for a doctor that is willing to meet with you before you filling out any paperwork. This means that they should be willing to do an interview, preferably free where you can talk to them for a few minutes to learn about them, their experience, and their practice. Many doctors do this, especially those who are pediatricians. This means that your sports medicine doctor should be willing to have an initial interview as well. Using this to your benefit means you can ask your questions and see how comfortable you are before you actually need their services.

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Purpose of the American College of Sports Medicine

The American College of Sports Medicine is more than just a nifty name; they are the main organization that is working towards improving the entire field of sports medicine with the overall health of athletes in mind. By taking the ideas and advances in sports medicine and combining them together with the best training and developmental research, the American College of Sports Medicine aims to help as many people as possible regardless of location.

Developed in 1954, the ACSM has more than 20,000 members currently amongst its ranks with members coming from all around the world. The American College of Sports Medicine is working in several ways to help improve the overall treatment options that are available to athletes around the world, including the use of their certification programs that range from the type of specialty. It is always recommended to select a sports medicine professional who is certified in the area in which they practice to ensure they have received the best training possible.

In addition to the certification programs that are offered the ACSM offers several conferences through out the year in various locations that are geared towards specific specialties. Professionals who are associated with the ACSM are highly encouraged to attend these conferences to help them stay up to date on the latest developments in the field of sports medicine.

In addition to working with professionals who are already practicing a specialty in the sports medicine field, the ACSM also encourages students who are still in school and those involved in their residency to start getting involved to ensure they are expanding their education as much as possible. While some may think that the ACSM is useless, many also agree that there are numerous benefits of having a specific group responsible for giving the certifications.

Most patients prefer working with doctors who are well qualified, and the American College of Sports Medicine offers numerous benefits because of the continued research in the field as well as extensive developmental opportunities that it offers. In addition, the ACSM is dedicated to helping professionals develop as much as possible simply by making it convenient, with a mixture of campus and online programs offered there is almost no reason why every sports medicine professional cannot be involved in continuing their educational goals.

Athletes themselves find the ACSM to be a great resource to them. It provides them a way of measuring various sports medicine professionals to help them determine which is the best provider for their individual needs. By ensuring that a certification method is in place, it allows most athletes and coaches alike to separate the dedicated sports medicine providers from those who are not as experienced and knowledgeable in the field.

As each individual provider grows and expands their knowledge of the field, they are usually welcomed to join the ACSM and ensure that they continue to stay at the top of their field. Various methods are always in place for most fields to keep professionals well trained and the ACSM provides this for the sports medicine field. Despite continuous improvements in treatment options available, the American College of Sports Medicine encourages professionals to continue to be the best in their field.

However, important to note is that aside from the ACSM encouraging doctors and other sports medicine professionals to continuously further their education it also encourages advances in the field to help new treatment methods develop faster, as well as helping ensure that all treatment methods have the best interests of the athletes in mind whom they are designed to help.

Further helping the ACSM is the fact that there are so many resources that are used to help ensure that certified professionals in the sports medicine field stay up to date on all pressing technology changes and new developments. Rather than allowing, all of the professionals to allow their education to take a backseat to their practice professionals are highly encouraged to continue learning as much as possible.

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