Sports Medicine Specialist

What is sports medicine?

Sports medicine specializes in treating and preventing injuries that occur when you’re engaged in any type of activity. 

In other words, sports medicine is not limited to organized sports or professional athletes. Anyone who sustains an injury while they’re active, whether you take walks or exercise at the gym, can count on exceptional care from a sports medicine specialist. 

Sports medicine physicians also help people achieve physical fitness and provide intensive rehabilitation after an injury. 

The overriding goal of the sports medicine physicians at ARC Orthopedic Group is to restore optimal health, strength, and function so you can get back to your daily routine as soon as possible.

What problems do sports medicine specialists treat?

Sports injuries may result from trauma, and ARC Orthopedic Group treats all types of traumatic injuries. However, overuse injuries that develop over months of repeating the same movement are more common.

Some of the most common repetitive stress injuries include:

• Shin splints
• Heel pain
• Bursitis
• Tendonitis
• Sprains and strains
• Throwing injuries
• Tennis elbow
• Jumper’s knee
• Spondylolisthesis
• Spondylolysis
• Stress fractures
• Tendon tears
• Shoulder dislocation

When you don’t give your body time to heal between activities, repetitive movements cause small tears that eventually turn into full-blown injuries.

What symptoms indicate I need a sports medicine physician? 

Sports injuries typically cause a classic group of symptoms, including:

• Pain
• Swelling
• Bruising
• Joint instability
• Limited mobility
• Muscle weakness
• Tingling or numbness
• Inability to use the affected limb

If your symptoms get worse or don’t improve in a few days, don’t wait to get help. Prompt treatment prevents additional damage that can lead to complications like chronic joint instability.

How do sports medicine specialists treat injuries?

ARC Orthopedic Group offers exceptional surgical care for sports injuries. When needed, your provider can repair any sports-related injury with minimally invasive or laparoscopic surgery.

But they’re also extensively trained to provide the full range of orthopedic care, from bracing and splinting to anti-inflammatory medications, viscosupplementation, and steroid injections.

ARC Orthopedic Group also treats sports injuries with platelet-rich plasma (PRP) injections. Your provider produces PRP from a sample of your blood, then injects it at the site of your injury. The platelets accelerate healing, reduce inflammation, and support new tissue growth.

You can also count on ARC Orthopedic Group for sport-specific rehabilitation and to develop exercise regimens to improve strength, endurance, or performance, and avoid injury.

If you need the help of a sports medicine specialist, call ARC Orthopedic Group, or book an appointment online today.