Think sports medicine specialists only treat school or professional athletes? Think again. These specialists can help anyone who wants to become, or stay, physically active.
Contributed by: Heather Rainey, MD
Sports medicine specialists have everyone from serious runners and weekend warriors to golfers and pickleball players covered. Even if you don’t play a single sport, a sports medicine physician can help you safely remain active for work and everyday life, says Heather Rainey, MD, MetroHealth Co-Director of Sports Medicine.
What a sports medicine doctor does
The main role of a sports medicine doctor is to treat people with non-emergency, activity-related issues or injuries. What makes this physician different from a primary care provider or even a general orthopedist is that they’re keeping your activity goals in mind — a return to whatever level of activity, from gentle walking to marathoning — as part of your treatment plan.
There are two types of sports medicine doctors:
- Primary care sports medicine doctors. When physical therapy doesn’t work or you don’t want or need surgery, they provide non-surgical and minimally invasive treatments to help you heal. This includes steroid injections, platelet-rich plasma injections and tendon debridement procedures.
- Surgical sports medicine doctors. These are orthopedic surgeons with special training in sports medicine.
Who benefits from sports medicine?
The obvious answer is an athlete of any level who’s experienced an injury that’s left them on the sidelines. But a sports medicine doctor can also help:
- Anyone looking to get physically active. The doctor will go over your health history and help you choose a sport or activity, or a level of play in a sport you already practice, that’s safe and right for you. They’ll also guide you in preventing injury.
- Anyone with a physically active job. This includes police officers, firefighters, delivery drivers and construction workers. It’s smart to keep yourself fit and active to do your job without pain or injury, and to address any work-related injuries before they get worse.
Conditions a sports medicine doctors treats
- Muscle strain and ligament sprains. Injuries include calf strains or ankle sprains.
- Stress fractures. Repeated force from overuse can cause small cracks or bruising in your bones.
- Repeated motion can injure tendons, the tissues that connect muscles and bones. You can get a tendon injury in your ankles, feet, heels, elbows, shoulders and wrists. Tennis elbow and rotator cuff injuries are some of the most common.
- Arthritis flares. People often develop arthritis as they age. It’s common for cardio workouts, such as running, to cause hip and knee arthritis to flare up.
How sports medicine improves your game
- The aim of a sports medicine doctor is to help you get better at what you love to do. They will:
- Assess your workout. Are you ignoring strength and stretching exercises and overdoing cardio, or the other way around? The doctor can advise you on a good program, and give you sports-specific warmups for golf, running and other sports.
- Provide nutritional guidance. A sports medicine doc can help you design an eating plan and suggest healthy snacks focused on keeping you fit and healthy.
- Provide guidance on sports-performance supplements. These can be confusing, and some may be risky. Sports medicine doctors can review what the research shows about what is best for your health.
If you’ve had a sports- or activity-related injury and want to make an appointment with a sports medicine doctor at MetroHealth, call 216-957-SPORT or visit metrohealth.org/sports-medicine for more information.