Sports Medicine

Long ago, sports medicine derived from the need to treat and prevent the injuries of elite athletes, but this branch of medicine has evolved to a wider spectrum. Sports medicine of today encompasses a broad array of specialties that support the care and training not only of elite athletes, but of all physically active individuals.

Whether you’re a high school, college or professional athlete, a frequent marathon runner, an occasional jogger, a weekend tennis player, or someone who simply enjoys any type of physical activity, sports medicine specialists can help maximize function, minimize disability and ultimately reduce time away from a sport, school work, and/or job.

Many sports medicine physicians, specifically orthopedic surgeons, specialize in athletic injuries of the bones, joints, muscles, cartilage and ligaments, usually with a special focus on spine, shoulder, hip, knee, foot and ankle conditions.

Sports injuries can result from accidents, inadequate training, improper use of protective devices, or insufficient stretching or warm-up exercises.

Some of the measures that are followed to prevent sports-related injuries include:

Follow an exercise program to strengthen the muscles
Gradually increase your exercise level and avoid overdoing the exercise
Ensure that you wear properly-fitted protective gear such as elbow guards, eye gear, facemasks, mouth guards, and pads, comfortable clothes, and athletic shoes before taking part in any sports activity which will help to reduce the chances of injury
Make sure that you follow warm up and cool down exercises before and after sports activity. Exercises will help to stretch the muscles, increase flexibility, and reduce soft tissue injuries
Avoid exercising immediately after eating a large meal
Maintain a healthy diet, which will nourish the muscles
Avoid playing when you are injured or tired. Take a break for some time after playing
Learn all the rules of the game you are participating in
Ensure that you are physically fit to play the sport

Some of the common sports injuries include:

Foot and Ankle Injuries
Foot and ankle injuries include the injuries in the leg below the knee, and they are common in athletes, especially while playing sports such as football, hockey and skating . Treatment for some of these conditions may be orthotics, braces, physical therapy, injections or surgery. Common sports injuries include sprains and strains, ankle fractures, and Achilles tendinitis.
Shoulder Injuries
Severe pain in shoulders while playing your favorite sports, such as tennis, basketball and gymnastics, may be because of a torn ligament in your shoulder or due to shoulder dislocation. These may be caused by overuse of your shoulder while playing sports. Simple pain or acute injuries may be treated with conservative treatment, while chronic injuries may require surgical treatment.
Hip Injuries
Fractures of the femur bone, labral tear and hip dislocation are some of the common sports injuries affecting the hip. The hip joint bears more weight and is more susceptible to injuries while playing sports. Hip injuries require immediate medical intervention to avoid further complications. Rehabilitation programs and physical therapy are often recommended following the medical intervention where you need to perform certain exercises to strengthen the muscles and improve the movements.
Knee Injuries
The anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) is a major stabilizing ligament in the knee, which may tear with overuse of the knee while playing sports. The ACL has a poor ability to heal and may cause instability. Other common sports injuries in the knee are cartilage damage and meniscal tears. Sports-related knee injuries may require surgical intervention that can be performed using open surgical or minimally invasive technique. Your surgeon will recommend you for physical therapy to strengthen your muscles, improve elasticity and improve the movements of the bones and joints.

At Austin Sports Medicine, our goal is to provide comprehensive orthopedic care from non-operative treatment of sports related injuries, operative intervention, and finally total joint replacement to allow patients to maintain their active lifestyle for as long as possible.

Austin Sports Medicine is dedicated to helping patients with degenerative hip, knee, and shoulder conditions that are causing pain and alterations in their lifestyle. Many patients have some form of painful hip, knee, or shoulder arthritis.

In the early stages of arthritis, the treatment may be quite simple to provide pain relief, but often times as the disease progresses, surgical intervention is necessary. The surgical procedures most commonly performed are hip, knee, and shoulder replacements, partial knee replacements, hip resurfacing, and revisions of old hip or knee replacements.

Every day we treat patients from the very early stages of arthritis who need simple conservative measures to improve pain and function, to very complex revision joint replacements that require major surgical intervention.

The benefit of Austin Sports Medicines’ specialization is that it allows us to focus on a very small set of problems that unfortunately affects many people. This allows us to be very efficient at taking care of patients with hip, knee, and shoulder arthritis and take complete control of the process from start to finish.

To learn more about sports medicine in Austin, please contact us today at 512-450-1300