Sports Medicine

A sports medicine doctor can be a non-surgical primary care physician or an orthopedic surgeon. Orthopedic surgeons complete an orthopedic surgery residency. Since sports medicine is more than just orthopedics, sports medicine doctors become trained in musculoskeletal injuries, asthma, hypertension, and diabetes. Sports medicine doctors, such as Dr. Hartman, are excellent doctors for athletics and also for active people who are not athletics.

Sports medicine physicians and orthopedic surgeons are well trained in musculoskeletal medicine. Sports medicine physicians specialize in the non-operative medical treatment of musculoskeletal sports conditions. Orthopedic surgeons, in addition to this training, are also trained in the operative treatment of these orthopedic conditions. Approximately 90% of all sports related injuries are non-surgical and require rehabilitative care.

Common sports medicine injuries could be ankle sprains, muscle strains, knee and shoulder injuries. Injuries could include overuse such as tendonitis or stress fractures. There may also be mild traumatic brain injury, or less severe issues such as nutrition needs or the need for additional exercise for patients who want to improve their levels of fitness.

Sports medicine is an area of health and special services that apply medical and scientific knowledge to prevent, recognize, manage and rehabilitate injuries related to sports, exercise or recreational activities. A sports medicine doctor promotes lifelong fitness and encourages the prevention of illness and injury. Sometimes a sports medicine doctor will help local sports teams and assist the athletic trainers, physical therapists, coaches and the team members.

The American Medical Society for Sports Medicine (AMSSM) was organized in1991 by a group of physicians who recognized the need for an organization that worked with athletes, active individuals and teams with consultative and continuous care approach, while addressing patient’s orthopedic, medical, nutritional, and psychosocial needs. Sports medicine addresses the needs of professional athletes, along with the grade school, high school, college students, and those adults who are not athletes but very active on the weekends.

Many great examples of medical innovation have come from research in sports medicine. Take baseball, for example. The extraordinary stresses a baseball player places on his elbows every time he throws a baseball can cause a breakdown and tear in the tissues surrounding the elbow. This type of injury was once considered devastating. Dr. Frank Jobe, a pioneer in sports medicine, designed a way to reconstruct the ligament. Sports medicine specialists have also improved the treatment of tears of the ACL, and have allowed athletes return to their sport have a successful ACL reconstruction. Improvements and advancements continue today, as sports medicine doctors seek to help their patients return to an active lifestyle soon after their sports related injuries.