Exercise and sporting activities can have tremendous benefits on your body. In fact, doctors recommend an active lifestyle over a sedentary one when trying to maintain good health. But what happens when you get injured while playing basketball or swimming with your friends? For a specialist in sports medicine, Lawrenceville practice Princeton Sports & Family Medicine is your best chance of recovery.

What Is Sports Medicine?

Sports medicine is concerned with the health of active individuals, from gym members to athletes. It focuses on physical activity and musculoskeletal conditions. Generally, a sports medicine specialist helps active individuals remain healthy during athletic activities.

Besides this, sports medicine is also concerned with evaluating, diagnosing, and treating sports injuries. It emphasizes the remedy of sports injury and the prevention of future accidents.

A sports medicine specialist can diagnose and treat the following sports injuries:

• Dislocations
• Broken bones and fractures
• Sport-related concussions
• Muscle strains and sprains
• Knee injury
• Shoulder, arm, or elbow pain
• Wrist and hand pain
• Tendinitis
• Foot and ankle pain

When to See a Specialist

Generally, you should see your sports medicine specialist regularly. This is to ensure you are operating in full health. You should also see a doctor if you get injuries, regardless of the severity of your symptoms. Some situations that require sports medicine include when:

You Have a Fracture

Sports that include significant and regular impact can result in broken or fractured bones. The severity will usually depend on the type of bone affected and the amount of trauma. However, even a mild fracture will require medical assistance. You can be alerted to a break or fracture through symptoms such as swelling, redness, and reduced range of motion.

You Experience Swelling or Redness

Besides a broken bone, you could also suffer soft tissue injuries upon impact with an object or fellow sportsman. A soft tissue injury is damage to the muscles, ligaments, tendons, or nerves. It can manifest as pain, numbness, swelling, or bruising. Nerve damage can also cause a tingling sensation in the affected area.

You Experience Weakness

It is normal to feel tired after a workout or game. However, if you experience weakness or fatigue even after resting, you might have a sports injury. The injury could get worse if you don’t seek immediate treatment from a sports medicine specialist.

You Are in Pain

If you find yourself grappling with debilitating pain in areas such as the neck, arms, legs, shoulders, or back, it is imperative to seek immediate assistance. Such persistent discomfort may indicate an underlying injury sustained during physical activity. In situations like these, consulting with an allied health professional, particularly a Physiotherapist Blaxland, or in your vicinity, can be a wise decision. Physiotherapy offers a targeted approach to injury recovery, addressing the root cause and facilitating a tailored rehabilitation plan. Also, pay close attention to any pain that radiates down your arms or legs as ignoring it could lead to severe complications, which might require leg or hand surgery for a full recovery.

Your Injury Is Debilitating

Some pain can be dismissed as the soreness that follows an intense workout. However, if the pain is debilitating enough to disrupt your daily activities, you should get treated early.

Conclusion

Sportsmanship requires commitment and sacrifice. This is why getting injured while playing can be frustrating. Luckily, a visit to a sports medicine specialist could be all you need to get back in the field. It can also help you identify weak spots and prevent future injuries.