Athletes: What to Do When You Get Damage

Whether or not you’re a weekend warrior, aggressive athlete, common leisure exerciser or just an lively particular person, you already know a nagging tendonitis or pores and skin an infection can halt you in your tracks.

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That’s the place sports activities drugs physicians step in.

“If an harm or sickness will get in the best way of your efficiency or being lively, we develop a plan to rapidly and safely get you again on monitor,” says sports activities drugs doctor Marie Schaefer, MD.

As a substitute of toughing it out, a sports activities drugs doctor can get you again to an lively way of life. Learn on to learn how.

Physicians for lively individuals and athletes

Greater than 90% of all sports activities accidents don’t require surgical procedure. Medical sports activities drugs physicians work alongside orthopaedic sports activities drugs physicians and different specialists — within the workplace and on the sidelines, from highschool to skilled degree groups — to diagnose and handle acute and continual musculoskeletal issues equivalent to:

• Acute accidents: Sprains, strains, fractures of the knee, hand, finger, shoulder or again accidents.
• Overuse accidents: Tendonitis or stress fractures.

Moreover, Dr. Schaefer says sports activities drugs physicians are skilled to deal with non-musculoskeletal points of sports activities drugs equivalent to:

• Concussion: They’ll present a complete analysis and administration of signs via a multidisciplinary method.
• Power or acute diseases affecting athletes: Sports activities drugs physicians can assist deal with acute diseases that may derail your coaching, equivalent to mononucleosis, bronchial asthma, hypertension, and diabetes.

Medical sports activities drugs physicians may information sufferers in choices concerning vitamin info (together with dietary supplements), ergogenic aids and efficiency points. They’ll additionally suggest train prescriptions if you wish to improve your health ranges, stop harm throughout a sport or health program or assist with return-to-play choices should you’re sick or injured.

Lastly, Dr. Schaefer says your sports activities drugs doctor could make suggestions on protected energy coaching and conditioning workouts, and methods you may embrace a wholesome way of life.

Sports activities drugs physicians: Not only for aggressive athletes

Dr. Schaefer says sports activities drugs physicians received’t simply deal with your signs. They’ll look into the reason for your signs, too.

“We take a look at why your harm or downside occurred and decide how greatest to deal with it,” Dr. Schaefer says. “And we assist stop recurrences by addressing the situation or ailment that performed a task in your harm within the first place.”

In the event you want additional care, your sports activities drugs doctor will information you and expedite your referral to a surgeon, musculoskeletal radiologist, bodily therapist, sports activities dietitian or sports activities psychologist.

Educated in two fields

Sports activities drugs physicians are first skilled and board-certified in one of many following specialties:

• Household drugs.
• Bodily drugs and rehabilitation.
• Pediatrics.
• Inner drugs.
• Emergency drugs.

Additionally they full one or two years’ coaching via a fellowship in sports activities drugs, a subject devoted to the great care of athletes and lively people.

How do sports activities drugs physicians deal with accidents?

“Sports activities drugs physicians deal with the entire particular person,” Dr. Schaefer says, together with offering schooling, tips about prevention and treating accidents in addition to info on non-surgical therapy choices and ongoing care. “They’re capable of consider and handle a number of circumstances in the identical lively particular person or athlete to supply a lifetime of care.”

Sports activities drugs physicians make the most of further instruments to deal with musculoskeletal points together with the next procedures:

• Corticosteroid injections and viscosupplementation.
• Platelet-rich plasma (PRP) injections.
• Ultrasound analysis and ultrasound-guided injections.
• Shock wave remedy.
• Power exertional compartment strain testing.
• Percutaneous tenotomy.

So whether or not you’re a leisure athlete, a professional, or somebody who needs to change into lively, a sports activities drugs doctor can assist you change into — and keep —lively within the exercise or sport you like.