Common Sport Injuries

During sports or physical activities, the most injured parts are usually the shoulders, hips, and knees. Among these injuries are the following:

Rotator Cuff Tears

A rotator cuff is a group of tendons and muscles that connects the arm and the shoulder. This injury can be caused by repetitive movements, a sudden or violent body motion shift, or the natural progression of aging. Symptoms of a rotator cuff tear includes pain on the affected shoulder, weakness during arm movement, and a crackling sensation in the area.

Labral Tears

The labrum is found in the shoulders and the hips. It forms a ring around the edge of the joints' bony socket. Symptoms of labral tears on the hips include pain and a catching feeling on the hip joint. Shoulder injury symptoms include pain accompanying even the simplest movements, loss of strength, and a locking feeling. Treatment for this kind of injury may include pain relievers and physical therapy.

Knee Injuries

The most common type of knee injury is the Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL) tear and the meniscal tear. When the ACL is injured, a popping sound is heard and the knee may feel like it's giving out. Treatment for ACL involves reconstructing the injured ligament with a tissue graft. Meniscal tears, on the other hand, may start with pain and stiffness or swelling on the knee. Some people are still able to move despite a tear in their meniscus. However, the knee becomes stiff and swollen after 2 to 3 days.

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What You Need to Know about Arthroscopy

Arthroscopy is one of the first procedures you'll need from your orthopedic surgeon. Essentially, it is a minimally invasive surgical procedure necessary to diagnose problems in the musculoskeletal system. This is accomplished by using a tube-like viewing instrument referred to as the arthroscope.

In this procedure, small incisions are made in the affected area from which pencil-sized instruments are inserted to view the ligaments inside the joint. Light is transmitted through fiber optics in the tube to magnify the view, while the other end of the athroscope is attached to a video monitor where the image data is transmitted for the doctor's analysis.

Almost any orthopedic patient can be a candidate for arthroscopy procedure, particularly those with varying symptoms in the muscle or joints. The procedure can detect tears in one's rotator cuffs in the shoulder joint or meniscal tears in the knee, as well as reveal signs of carpal tunnel syndrome and shoulder impingement.

You can recover from an arthroscopy procedure in a matter of days and return to your normal activities in no time at all. Ask your orthopedic professional on how to change the dressing on your incision so that you can maintain it and facilitate proper healing at home.

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About Sports Medicine

Sports medicine is a branch of medicine that specializes in the treatment and prevention of certain injuries from the performance of sports or exercise. Athletes often need special treatment because of the high demands of their sports. Sports medicine is not just physical therapy, it also involves a personal and professional relationship with the athletes as a way for them to keep tab of their athletes' choices and their lifestyle that might compromise their health.

Sports medicine centers offer different treatments for sports-related injuries for athletes at every level to help them regain their optimum level of performance. Most of these treatment centers offer the most advanced treatments, the latest technology, and the most compassionate care that a patient could ever receive.

According to the American Academy of Sports Medicine, 3 million children aged 14 and under get hurt annually by playing sports. The growth of youth sports also contribute to the increasing number of sports-related injuries. Preventing injuries is always a precaution during play, as important as encouraging kids to play and enjoy sports.

Sports medicine specialists may include primary care physicians who can treat minor, yet excruciating musculosketal conditions, as well as orthopedic surgeons trained in advanced surgical techniques. These doctors are trained to warn athletes against using their bodies when there is clearly not enough flexibility for the activity, or against poor technique or inordinate training or intensity when recovery or rest hasn't been completed.   

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How Bones Heal Themselves From Fractures

Although bones may seem like simple hard structures that frame the body, they are actually very complex parts of the human anatomy that continue to change as man grows older. Bones are made of different tissues and mineral deposits. Inside the bones are marrows where fat is stored and red blood cells are produced.

Broken bones are usually tended, specifically by an orthopedic doctor, but bones are able to repair themselves most of the time. Unless cases are severe, small fractures could be fixed by the body through four phases.

When bone is broken, the blood vessels inside are broken, too. Blood that escapes from the bone then starts to clot to keep the bones together as they are mended, and tiny blood vessels start to develop to continue the needed supply of fresh blood which fuel the healing process.

The second phase begins when a tougher tissue is developed on the fracture to form a soft callus. Collagen, a protein that helps in bone tissue development, is produced in order to further strengthen the soft callus which would hold the fractured bones together.

The production of bone cells marks the third stage. These cells develop and transform the callus into a bone callus to act as a shell during the final stage of healing.

Bones, however, have limited healing capabilities. Where fractures are severe, orthopedic doctors need to be consulted to commence the treatment process in replacing or healing the bones to keep the part whole once again. 

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