Sports medicine is not just for elite professionals, but also for high school and college athletes, as well as weekend warriors. The reason? Sports injuries have become increasingly common among people who are active.
If you’re suffering from a sports injury – from a simple strain to a complex situation such as rehab after surgery – the Wisconsin River Orthopaedics sports medicine team can help. Working closely with our physical therapists, we develop personalized treatment and recovery plans that help eliminate pain, add strength, and restore functionality.
What is Sports Medicine?
Sports medicine is a specialty within the orthopaedic field, focusing on injuries sustained while performing some sort of physical activity such as running or playing basketball or tennis. The most common type of injuries patients typically deals with related to sports medicine are those labeled as musculoskeletal, which is any injury affecting bones, muscles, nerves, ligaments, or tendons that causes pain.
Musculoskeletal trauma – no matter how minor or major – can have a significant impact on a person’s ability to function at their best, whether they’re on or off the sports field. At Wisconsin River Orthopaedics, we get people back to feeling their best.
How orthopaedics sports medicine can help
Our highly skilled sports medicine specialists at Wisconsin River Orthopaedics have exceptional training and experience in both diagnosing and treating a variety of sports-related injuries.
Not only can we help with acute injuries – like rolling an ankle – but we can assist with overuse injuries such as throwing a baseball incorrectly.
Examples of the injuries we can assist with are:
- ACL and MCL tears in the knees
- Achilles tendon injuries
- Ankle sprains
- Carpal tunnel syndrome
- Fractures
- Medial and lateral epicondylitis (golfer’s and tennis elbow)
- Meniscus and labral tears
- Patellofemoral syndrome
- Plantar fasciitis
- Rotator cuff tears
- Shoulder impingement and frozen shoulder
- Stress fractures
- Trigger finger and Dupuytren's contracture
Sports Medicine Treatment Options
When it comes to treating sports injuries, there are several different options offered by our sports medicine team that include both non-surgical and surgery solutions.
For most patients, surgery isn’t typically the initial course of action for treating injuries since our team will explore all non-surgical treatment options first.
Non-surgical treatment options include:
- Range-of-motion and strengthening exercises
- Moist heat and cold therapy
- Neuromuscular re-education
- Therapeutic ultrasound
- Iontophoresis
- Electrical stimulation
- Customized splint fabrication
- Home exercise programs
- Steroid injections
For most patients, non-surgical treatments can resolve a sport-related injury. However, if surgery is necessary, our board-certified orthopaedic surgeons on staff are ready to step in to help, using advanced, minimally invasive arthroscopic techniques. These techniques fall under the umbrella of arthroscopic surgery, which reduces post-surgical pain, scarring, and recovery time.
For a speedy return to fitness after a sports medicine injury, make sure to call our office today at (715) 424-1881. Patients can trust our team to deliver first-class orthopaedic sports medicine services.