Sports medicine is a special field of medicine that mainly focuses on prevention of injury or injury to those persons who are involved in fitness fields, sports and different forms of sporting performances.

The basic Fundamentals of sports medicine involve the evaluation and diagnosis of an injury and treating the injury, promoting the process of healing and preventing future injuries. Prevention of an injury is also in important part of the field of study.

There are a vast series of patients and consumer groups that are getting benefit from the practice of this sports medicine. It is beneficial for different sections of sports persons, athletes and also non-athletes.

Sports medicine is very essential when you are in non-professional spheres, and even when you are any sport athlete. This is because injuries those are caused by sports and may cause a great deal of damage to the body, if it isn’t treated properly in future that will turn to long term damage. For example, Fractures may lead to many problems like arthritis, general aches, pains and permanent joint pain. Bones that are rehabilitated properly or not set properly would have less mobility and they may reduce your ability to play sports. More serious sports injuries that take a long time to recover means that you require help to get your bones and muscles back in working position which also needed the skills of another person who is working in the field of sports medicine.

This is also about the prevention of further injuries. Your doctor would go over many ways to eliminate injuries in future, to avoid risk factors, and the things to do that would strengthen your body muscles and make you less tend to future injuries. Sometimes you may have to tweak your exercise, diet differently. Your doctor may also suggest you about the changes you need to make in diet to compensate the process of healing.

Rehabilitation and physical therapy of sports medicine involves the regaining of mobility and strength in an injured area of the body or part following recreational or sports injury. Physical therapy is designed to benefit individuals regain their strength without extending the injury by using a variety of methods, Including but not bound to electrical stimulation and aquatic therapy.

Sports medicine is also about you though. Before satisfying the needs of others and team, you are required to put time for you and your needs. This will be helpful for you because you can concentrate now on your injury. And you may get well soon that means you’ll get well faster and be able to go back to your normal activities.

Meniscus is a very tiny piece of the cartilage, even it is so small tearing it or torn meniscus may cause severe pain. This meniscus of cartilage is c-shaped and very small, and there are three parts that cushion and protect the knee joint: one between the shin bone and thigh bone (tibia and femur), one is on the outer side of the knee this is known as lateral meniscus, and the other one is medical meniscus which is on the inside of knee.

The meniscus can be usually injured by squatting down or twisting on foot and bending the knee forcefully. Occasionally a torn occurs with a little compression on the knee. Torn may occur due to the damage to the tissue since a long time as a result of diseases such as knee arthritis.

The most common case for a torn meniscus is due to degenerative process and traumatic injury. The traumatic meniscus torn occurs when the knee is twisted and the joint of the knee is bent.

Treatment:

Treatment for a torn meniscus depends on different factors that include the type of the torn, activity level of the person, and response or reaction to the simple treatments. Arthroscopic surgery is usually recommended to treat the torn meniscus. This surgery would remove the tissues that are torn and saves the meniscus that is healthy. Without a surgical treatment, the tear would likely go on with fragments and activity of the torn meniscus that can damage the smooth articular cartilage of the knee that would result not only pain but it may also lead to arthritis.

Types of arthroscopic surgery for a torn meniscus:

Surgery for a torn meniscus includes removal of meniscus, meniscus replacement, or meniscus repair. Meniscus repair would have been successful in most of the patients and the complications are at very low rate through this procedure. Meniscus repair is an elective method of arthroscopic surgery, so it can be scheduled depending on the patient’s needs, but it is best to perform within two months after the knee injury. This arthroscopic surgery can be performed by doing several small incisions to the knee area and repairing and examining the tissue. Three small portals or holes are made in the knee. Through one of the portals the arthroscope is inserted. Saline solution is sent through the second portal to improve maneuverability and visibility of the instruments. The third portal is used for working tools. The tools and arthroscope are roughly 4.5mm in diameter. In this process the fragment of the torn is then cut and removed. The edges of the remaining meniscus would be shaved smoothly. Any gliding cartilage can also be shaved smoothly. Finally large amount of saline is flushed through the knee area to wash out the tiny particles, which are lying on the surface. The incisions are then closed with a small stitch and a pain reliever would be injected into the knee joint this will act for a long time. This surgery can be done under local or general anesthesia and it takes about 60 to 120 minutes to complete. If you have decided to undergo the arthroscopic surgery, it is essential to choose a qualified orthopedic surgeon.

Carpal tunnel syndrome is a condition of wrist that would result from an increased pressure on the median nerve of the wrist; it is much like if nerve was pinched. Patients who are suffering from CTS often experience symptoms like tingling or numbness, and pain in the hand, arm, or fingers. Inside the wrist through a space called carpal tunnel nine tendons would passing from the wrist to the hand, and CTS would occur when the carpal tunnel swells and the pressure is put on the middle nerve. When the pressure and swelling gets large enough to affect the performance of the nerves, then numbness, pain or tingling can be felt in the fingers and hand.

Treatment:

To properly diagnose the carpal tunnel syndrome, your hand surgeon may take a detailed medical history during your first visit. This medical history would include how your hands are and any prior injuries. Arthritis or any fractures can be checked by using an X-ray, and sometimes laboratory tests may also be used to check out for the presence of the other medical situations that are associated with CTS. NCV can be performed along with EMG or electromyogram to confirm the diagnosis. These tests can be useful in indentifying other possible conditions of the nerves.

If you are suffering from CTS any way, hand surgery can improve your condition. Mostly the surgeon will likely begin the treatment with non-surgical procedure before going for surgery. Very specialized hand surgery can be used to treat this disease that causes pain, impair function, flexibility and strength of your fingers and wrist. Surgery is needed to restore the normal functioning of hands and fingers that are injured by carpal tunnel.

At starting stage of the treatment, the patient will be recommended to use drugs; however if that drugs are not successful, then your doctor would suggest rigid therapy. A physical therapist along with a hand surgeon will design a treatment of stretching and strengthening exercises in an effort to regain the functioning of hand.

There are two common carpal tunnel surgeries that would deal with CTS, which include:

·         Open release hand surgery

·         Endoscopic surgery

Open surgery: This is the common and traditional surgery. This can be done by making two inch incision on the wrist. To enlarge the carpal tunnel, the ligament would be cut. This procedure can be done under local anesthesia and on the basis of outpatient.

Endoscopic surgery: Generally this is done for the sheer convenience of speedier recovery. In this procedure, surgeon makes two small incisions in the wrist and in the palm of about one half inch. A small camera is used to find the ligament of carpal and cut it to relieve the pressure causing pain and symptoms. This surgery can also be performed under normal anesthesia.

Shoulder replacement surgery is early started by United States of America in 1950s. This is the replacement of damaged or torn shoulder joint with one artificial joint. This joint is a socket or ball joint. It enables the arm to raise, bend and twist. It is also used to move the arm to forward, behind and to the sides. In a body, normal shoulder’s upper arm bone rounded end glides up on the small disk just like socket in shoulder scapula. These surfaces are to be jointed and normally covered by smooth cartilage. This allows shoulder to rotate in a grater motion as compared to other joints in the body. Severe cases show, bone-on-bone arthritis lead to wearing-erosion away from the bone. Many people are well known about artificial knees and hip joints. Shoulder replacement surgery is quite common, but it’s a success would be in mollifying the joint pain.

Benefits of shoulder replacement surgery:

·         This surgery will improve patient’s quality of life.

·         It would reduce or eliminate the pain and you can be able to do daily activities easily.

·         This surgery will improve the appearance of rearranged joints.

·         Fat embolus risk is reduced. Less traumatic surgery and regaining of normal anatomy are advantages with shoulder replacement surgery.

·         This will improve the movement of the joint. Surgery stabilizes or replaces the joints, which would allow you to walk and stand more easily.

·         Shoulder replacement surgery can give relief from pain, which doesn’t respond to the other methods of treatment.

·         It will improve the alignment of disfigured joints. Re-alignment of joint would result in improved functioning of the joint and also makes cosmetic improvements.

·         This surgery is prominently useful to treat rheumatoid arthritis, osteoarthritis, rotator cuff tear arthropathy, posttraumatic arthritis and avascular necrosis.

·         The movement accommodated by a CPM machine would decrease the stiffness of the joint and the quantity of the scar tissue that formed within it.

·         This surgery helps for those patients, previously who are unable to lift their arm more than 90 degrees. This would allow the patients to use their deltoid muscle in the place of a torn rotator cuff.

·         This surgery would result by enhancing the mobility and movement and the quality of the life.

·         This procedure is intended to restore the strength, function, and motion and also reduce the shoulder joint pain.

To get most of these benefits, you need to look for an orthopedic surgeon who is well experienced and knowledgeable.

Physical therapy plays a major role in treating the herniated disk. It will give immediate pain relief and also teach you how to maintain your body to prevent injury.

The goal of this treatment is to improve flexibility, strength and endurance to allow you to engage in normal activities. Exercises prescribed by the physical therapist can also be helpful for you to relieve from the pressure on your nerves, and reduce the symptoms of weakness and pain. This program may also include aerobic exercise to improve circulation and build endurance and stretching exercises to develop the flexibility of muscles. Other exercises may also helpful in strengthening the muscles of your abdomen, legs, and back.

There are several physical therapy techniques available which relax your body, which includes cold and hot therapy, deep tissue massage, hydrotherapy, and electrical stimulation.

Mostly this type of treatment will begin with passive treatment. Once the body heals, you can start with active treatments, which will strengthen your body and avoid further pain. This physical therapy treatment includes:

Passive treatments:

Cold and hot therapy: Both cold and hot therapies would offer their individual benefits, your physical therapist can suggest any one of them, which is best for you. Heat therapy is used to increase the flow of the blood at the affected area. This blood would deliver extra nutrients and oxygen, which helps to heal the affected area.  Blood collects the waste byproducts from muscles. Conversely, Cold therapy is used to slow down the blood circulation that reduces the inflammation, pain and muscle spasms.

Deep tissue massage: More than 100 kinds of massages are available, but deep tissue massage is considered as the best treatment option for the people who are suffering from herniated disc. Because in this technique, a great deal of pressure will be used to relieve from deep muscle spasm and tensions that develop to avoid motion of muscles at the affected area.

Hydrotherapy: This therapy would involve water. This is a passive treatment, so this involves simply sitting in a pool of water or warm shower. This would give relaxation to the muscles and relieve pain.

Active treatments:

These treatments help address posture, flexibility, core stability, joint movement and strength. An exercise program might be prescribed to achieve the best results. This will not only reduce recurrent pain but it also benefits to your overall health. Based on your health history and specific diagnosis, your physical therapist would work with you to improve a program.

Flexibility: Learning flexibility and stretching techniques may prepare you for strength and aerobic exercises. Flexibility can remove the stiffness of the body and it helps your body to move easily.

Core stability: Your abdominal muscles would help your back muscles to support your spine. If your abdominal muscles are weak, then it will put an extra pressure on back muscles. In the process of strengthening your back, the physical therapist may suggest you physical therapy.

Spine surgery is the Treatment for scoliosis. What is scoliosis means when you look at usual spine from back or front it should appear as straight. However, if you have scoliosis, it appears like an S-shaped curve from front to back or side to side.

Depending on the patient’s age and length of curvature, the scoliosis treatment can be done. Most of the people who are suffering from scoliosis live normally and there is no difference from others, they can participate in all activities and are physically active. If the curve becomes extra worse, your surgeon will help to treat the situation with spine surgery or a brace.

By using this spine surgery for scoliosis, vertebrae can be fused so that the spine is unable to bend and correct the deformity. 50 percent or more of the disease can be corrected by the orthopedic surgeon.

Spine surgery is significantly used for:

·         A kid who has severe curve on spine which is greater than 40 degrees.

·         An adult who has greater than 50 degrees curve.

Other factors:

·         Status of puberty, skeletal age and the person’s age.

·         Curve location.

When doing spine surgery some other situations are considered such as:

·         A very young kid who has spinal curves as severe.

·         A kid who has problem in breathing or who is suffering from scoliosis.

About the spine surgery:

In the middle of the back, your physician will make a cut. The spine is exposed by moving the muscles to the side. The intersections between the spine are removed to unbind them. The vertebra is ridged up so that the body acts by producing fresh bone.

The fresh bone eventually connects the empty spaces between the vertebrae so that they can fuse together. Implants of metal such as screws, rods, or wires are placed in it to support the spine until vertebrae fuse.

Spine surgery usually takes 4 to 6 hours; generally this time depends on your child’s condition.

Bone Transplant:

The fusion improved with bone transplantation. If the bone is taken from your kid then it is known as autogenous bone transplantation and usually harvested from the stomach, or it can also be taken from a donor which is known as allogenous.

An advantage of allogenous bone transplantation is, there is less risk of infection and more rapid inclusion with the remaining vertebrae. A disadvantage of this surgery is, it will cause pain and bring its own group of risks, so it is essential to obtain the bone.

The basic problem of allogenous bone transplantation is infection. You must have to decide whether to continue or not for a surgery after cautiously discussing the risks and benefits with the orthopedic surgeon.

Shoulder impingement syndrome is also called as supraspinatus syndrome, painful arc syndrome, and swimmers syndrome. It is a common condition that would affect the shoulder and mostly it is seen in older adults. This situation is closely related to rotator cuff tendinitis and shoulder bursitis. These conditions may occur in combination or alone.

Shoulder impingement syndrome is a clinical syndrome that occurs when the tissues of rotator cuff muscle are inflamed and irritated as they move and pass through the space of the subacromial, the passage below the acromion. This may cause pain, loss of movement at the shoulder, and weakness.

Most parts of our body bones are surrounded by the muscles. However, in shoulder region the muscle is surrounded by bone. The Muscles, which are located underneath the bone, would lift the arm. Between the top of the shoulder and arm bone the Rotator cuff muscles of the shoulder are squeezed in. This unique arrangement of the muscles between the bones leads to the shoulder impingement syndrome, such as rotator tendinitis, shoulder bursitis.

When an injury occurs to the rotator cuff muscles, they would respond by swelling. However, the muscle of rotator cuff is surrounded by bone, so its swelling can cause a number of events to happen. If the pressure increases within the muscle, it would result in loss of blood flow and compression in the small blood vessels which is called as capillaries. If the blood flow is lessening, the tissue of the muscle begins to fight much like a rope. As the tissue of the muscle swells, it shows an outcome as pain, which is characterized like a toothache. This pain would become annoyed by doing actions such as reaching up overhead and reaching up behind the back. This pain may interrupt the night sleep.

The cause for shoulder impingement syndrome include: insufficient space between rotator cuff and acromion, it will cause impingement. Normally, whenever you raise, your arm tendons of the rotator cuff can slide easily under the acromion; however, it is naturally to have some degree of pinching or rubbing of the bursa and tendons. Overuse of the shoulder in a raised up position can lead to impingement and can damage to the tendons of rotator cuff or can lead to ongoing pain. Shoulder impingement syndrome can cause shoulder aches in the early stages of the condition. The pain may develop when you roll on to the affected shoulder. A believable symptom of this condition is an acute pain when you try to reach your back. Discomfort increases as the condition worsens. The joint of the shoulder impingement syndrome is an acute pain when you try to reach your back. The discomfort increases as the condition worsens. The joint of the shoulder may become stiffer. Along with the physical therapy and anti-inflammatory medicines RICE method will be useful to fight against this syndrome. For severe cases, surgery or corticosteroid injections may be needed.

Contact your orthopedic surgeon to know about your condition and how to deal with it.

Our spine is cushioned by mushy, tiny discs. These spongy discs would absorb the shocks, which are tolerated by our body. A disc is said to be herniated if it gets ruptured or damaged. It mostly affects your low back and sometimes it may also affect the neck, which is called as cervical spine.

People who are involved in sports and occupation which require twisting, pushing, or heavy lifting are very likely to suffer from this disorder. Inside the disc sometimes leaks into the spinal channel that result in spinal cord and nerve ending compression. Depending on the compression location this may cause strong pain.

A barrage of the tests can be performed to check out the herniated disc, such as X-rays, electromyogram and myelogram etc. These tests can be done after a general examination of the affected back area and considering the symptoms of the pain.

Myelogram would be performed to take a spinal x-ray to know which pressure point is developed in the surrounding spinal tissues and nerves.

Electro-myogram is performed to check the electric wave magnitudes along the nerve paths, which also including through muscle tissues. Here the reading shows whether there is any damage due to nerve areas and messed up tissues as a result of herniated disc.

Treatment:

The treatment for herniated disc can be classified as:

1. Non surgical treatment

2. Surgical treatment

Nonsurgical treatment:

This treatment is aimed to help you to go back your daily routine that includes:

Learn: You must be educated about your back, which include handling the pain and controlling the symptoms. Many doctors would recommend physical therapy, which will reduce the discomfort due to pain and inflammation, followed by improving flexibility and strength of the muscle.

Rest: A short period of rest can improve the followed activity.

Relief from pain: You can use medicine to relieve from the inflammation and pain instead of dealing with the pain without taking any medicine. These medicines include: Opioids, muscle relaxants, antidepressants, corticosteroids, prescription and nonprescription pain relievers, like nonsteroidal anti inflammatory drugs (NSAIDS) or acetaminophen.

Surgical treatment:

Generally surgical treatment is considered as a last option, or if the person has a significant neurological disease. Only about 10% of people can be treated with surgeries for herniated disc. It can be a best treatment option for the patients who are suffering from numbness or sever weakness, or nerve damage, which is getting worse or if the condition is not improved after the nonsurgical treatment.

1. Discectomy: This is the effective and most common surgery for herniated disc, which includes the removal of the disc material through an incision. This is mostly preferred to relieve from the pain. Discectomy will give relief from symptoms such as numbness and pain, but it does not give relief from the back pain.

Some other surgical options are:

2. IDET-An invasive surgery for disc pain

3. Chemonucleolysis - Abolish the protruding disc

4. Laminectomy-To get relief from nerve compression or spinal stenosis

5. Tessys method-This is a transforaminal endoscopic procedure, which gives relief from herniated disc

6. Hemilaminectomy-This will give relief from nerve compression or spinal stenosis

7. Dynamic stabilization

8. Disc arthroplasty

9. Lumbar Fusion

Contacting an experienced spine surgeon will suggest best treatment method for your condition. Make sure to search for a board certified surgeon in your area.

A sprain is a torn or stretched ligament. Ligaments play a vital role in connecting one bone with another bone at the joint. Ankle sprains are mostly happen during daily activities and also in sports. If the foot is based awkwardly, then it affects by twisting the movements of ankle joint. It happens if the ground is not balanced or uneven, and when abnormal amount of physical energy is applied on the joint.

In usual movements, the ligaments may slightly stretch and then come back to their usual size and shape. An ankle sprain appears when ankle ligaments have been elongated beyond their level.

Treatment:

Initial treatment for ankle sprains includes RICE method. To treat the ankle sprains in a proper way you must have to consult your doctor before starting any rehab or treatment. Here is the overview of RICE procedure for the treatment of ankle sprains:

Rest: in the starting period of injury that is 24-48 hours followed by the injury is considered a crucial period for treatment and activities need to be abridged. Gradually put weight on the affected ankle as beard and avoid use of crutch when you can walk with a usual gait.

Ice: after 48 hour of the injury, keep ice pack and lift up the ankle sprains 20 minutes for every 3-4 hours. This ice pack can include frozen vegetables such as corn or peas, which are allowing you to re-use them. Another useful treatment procedure is to fill the paper cups with drinking water then freeze that cup. Use these frozen cubes by peeling away the paper. Kept the ice on ankle sprains for less than 20 minutes, if you kept for more than 20 minutes it may cause tissue damage.

Compression: Continue for compression procedure when lifting up the ankle sprain in initial treatment. Wrap the ankle by using an elastic bandage from the toes to the mild calf, by applying even pressure. The wrap should be comfortable. If the foot becomes blue, cold, or falls asleep, it indicates that the wrap is cutting off the circulation to your ankle and foot so re-wrap it.

Elevate: keep the ankle sprain at height. Lift up it at night by placing pillows, books, or using any material under your foot. Stand up carefully in the morning.

You can start exercises under physician guidance. Without applying any force on ankle, basic exercises should be performed. Some standard exercises such as range of motion exercise, isometric exercise, and resistance exercise can be useful for ankle sprains.

More severe injuries for ankle sprains, including total rips of the ligaments and bone fractures may need various rehab and treatments than simple sprain.

If you won’t get any relief from this RICE procedure, you can consult an orthopedic doctor to know about your condition and treatment.

Pain is an uneasy feeling which lets you know something may be incorrect in your body. It is a way of transmitting advice to the brain. Your nerves and spinal cord provide path for symptoms to travel from and to your brain and the remaining organs of your body. Sometimes pain can be just an annoyance, like a normal headache. It may be serious at other times.

Types of Pain:

There are mainly two types of pain which include:

·         Chronic pain-this type of pain continues for weeks, months, or years. It occurs along with the chronic health condition such as arthritis. It can affect the people in such a way that they cannot eat properly, do not involve in physical activity, and they do not enjoy life. Chronic pain is treated as a major medical illness and that should be medicated. Low back pain, arthritis pain, cancer pain, headache are some examples of chronic pain. Other pains due to the damage in main nerve system like spinal cord and brain may lead to the pain disorders like neuropathies and neuralgias.

·         Acute Pain-it may occur due to the tissue damage, inflammation, illness, injury, or due to the recent surgery and normally due to an identifiable cause and it remains for short duration, most probably it is less than one or two weeks. You can relieve from this pain after treating the underlying cause.

Pain Medicine:

Pain medicine is also called as analgesic. Every type of analgesics has advantages and disadvantages. Particular type of pain can be relieved better to some kind of medicines than to other kind. OTC (over-the-counter) medications are better for several types of pains. You can buy over-the-counter medicines without doctor’s prescription. They include:

·         Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDS).

·         Acetaminophen (Tylenol).

NSAID:

·         You can buy these medicines without a prescription. For example ibuprofen (motrin, advil), aspirin, or naproxen (aleve, naprosyn).

·         Doctors can suggest medicines such as diclofenac, flurbiprofen, ketoprofin, tolmetin, nabumetone, melxicam, dexibuprofen, celecoxib and indomethacin.

·         Do not use aspirin for children- while treating chicken pox and viral infections in children, usage of aspirin may cause Reye syndrome.

·         If you are suffering with high blood pressure, heart disease, kidney disease or if you have a history of digestive system disorders or stomach bleeding, take care before using OTC and NSAID.

These medications can give relieve from pain, and they also decrease the swelling from strain, arthritis or sprains of muscles. Even though your health condition is good, taking too much pain medicines for many days may cause side effects.

Acetaminophen:

·         It is also called as non-aspirin pain medicine. It is used for low fever and headaches and other mild pains and aches.

·         It is safe for children, it is tolerable by stomach. Pain medicine doctors mostly recommend acetaminophen for arthritis pain due to its lesser side effects.

·         Do not cross the limit of 4000mg per day, over dose can be dangerous to the liver.