Sports Medicine

What types of sports injuries require medical care?

At some point while working out or playing sports, most people experience sore muscles or bruising that doesn’t require medical attention. However, some types of injuries require medical care like:

• Sprains
• Strains
• Knee injuries, like meniscus tears
• Tendinitis
• Rotator cuff injuries
• Golfer’s elbow or tennis elbow
• Iliotibial (IT) band syndrome
• Jumper’s knee
• Plantar fasciitis

It’s best to see Dr. Han as soon as possible after experiencing a sports injury so that you can get a diagnosis and treatment right away. In many cases, the sooner you get treatment for a sports injury, the sooner you’ll recover.

What are the signs of a sports injury?

Common signs of sports injuries that require medical care include:

• Moderate to severe bruising and swelling
• Muscle or joint pain
• Decreased range of motion
• Difficulty bearing weight on the affected leg or foot
• Trouble moving an injured shoulder, elbow, or wrist
• Pain with specific movements

More serious sports injuries like fractures and dislocations require emergency care. If Dr. Han suspects you have a more serious injury, he provides referrals to the appropriate medical professionals so you can get the treatment you need.

What’s the process for diagnosing sports injuries?

To diagnose a sports injury, Dr. Han begins by asking about your symptoms and the cause of your injury. Then he performs a thorough orthopedic exam to check your range of motion, muscle strength, and nerve function. Dr. Han also performs tests to check the structural integrity of your joints and muscles.

In some cases, Dr. Han may refer you for X-rays or an MRI if he suspects a more serious injury or you’re not healing normally.

What’s the treatment for sports injuries?

For most sports injuries, Dr. Han recommends using ice on the injured area and resting. He provides a variety of treatments to speed up your healing, including chiropractic care, physical therapy, and manual therapy.

The first goal of treatment is to relieve your pain, so Dr. Han uses different techniques to address your discomfort, like cold laser therapy, kinesiology taping, hypervolt, air relax, foam rolling or lacrosse ball rolling, and chiropractic care. Once your pain level has decreased, the second step is to support the repair of the injured tissues through manual and physical therapies, which can also prevent re-injury in the future.

To set up an exam for your sports injury, call Nabi Movement or book online now.