Sports Medicine
If you’ve had a sports-related injury or have a condition that’s keeping you out of the game, our sports medicine expert physicians and specialists are here to help you get back to doing the things you love.
Sports Medicine and Sports-Related Injuries
Any injury that occurs during exercise or while playing a sport is considered a sports-related injury. This type of injury is often the result of not using proper technique or the appropriate equipment. It can also be caused by not warming up enough or not stretching properly before getting into action. Some people injure themselves by pushing too hard and not allowing sufficient rest in between workouts. Injuries can also be caused by accident, of course, such as tripping and falling while running or colliding with another person during a team sport.
Orthopaedics at Main Line Health offers board-certified sports medicine doctors to quickly evaluate, diagnose and develop a personalized care plan to help you find relief from pain.
Sports injuries may affect the muscles, joints, tendons and ligaments, and most commonly include:
- Sprains
- Strains
- Swelling
- Fractures
- Dislocation
The Achilles tendon (tissue connecting muscles of calf to the heel bone) and the knees are particularly vulnerable to sports injuries.
A sports-related injury can be acute, causing sudden pain during play, or chronic pain, in which pain endures and gets reactivated when you're exercising or at rest.
In either case, you should stop what you're doing right away as continuing to push past the pain may cause further (and sometimes irreparable) harm to your body.
Generally, sports injuries can be cared for at home with medication to relieve pain and the familiar formula RICE, which stands for rest, ice, compression and elevation. If you've had an injury to the head, however, or you have a broken bone or dislocation, you need to go to the emergency room right away.
Some sports injuries require immediate or ongoing medical care. Orthopaedics at Main Line Health offers a comprehensive sports injury rehabilitation team, including orthopaedic surgeon, physiatrist, physical therapist, occupational therapist, exercise physiologist, sports medicine specialist and athletic trainer. Together, our team of experts can help you heal, strengthen and get back to doing the activities you love to do.
To schedule an appointment with a specialist at Main Line Health, call 1.866.CALL.MLH (1.866.225.5654).
If you’ve had an injury and are unable to drive yourself or feel as though you might pass out, call 911 right away.
Treatments
Non-Surgical Orthopaedic Treatments
Some orthopaedic conditions are first treated with non-surgical procedures followed by surgery as the next step.
Orthopaedic Rehab
As one of the most extensive programs at Bryn Mawr Rehab Hospital, our primary focus is to help patients build strength, mobility and endurance for a variety of orthopaedic conditions.
Anterior Cruciate Ligament Reconstruction
Most ACL tears cannot be sutured (stitched) back together. To surgically repair the ACL and restore knee stability, the ligament must be reconstructed.
Hamstring Tendon Repair
Uses the same specialized equipment used for hip arthroscopy, without the traction, to repair tears in the tendons of the hip.
Hand Repair and Rehabilitation
Main Line Health's experts use the latest techniques to help patients regain their hand's functionality. Explore our comprehensive services.
Hand Surgery
If you need hand surgery, Main Line Health has locations throughout Philadelphia providing clinical and surgical expertise for many types of hand conditions.
Hand Therapy
A hand therapy specialist is well-versed in a variety of methods and works to develop a personalized regimen for the unique needs of every patient. Our patients come from all walks of life—from young athletes to long-term arthritis sufferers to accidental burn victims.
Hip Fracture Surgery
The type of hip fracture repair surgery you may have generally depends on the location and severity of the fracture, whether the broken bones aren't properly aligned (displaced fracture), and your age and underlying health conditions.
Joint Aspiration
This procedure is used to relieve pain and swelling by removing fluid from the joint space but also allows for fluid analysis to diagnose gout, arthritis and joint infection.
Joint Distension
Joint distension, or hydrodilitation, involves injection of sterile water into the joint to expand the area and help the adhesions loosen and pull away so the shoulder is no longer restricted.
Joint Manipulation
Joint manipulation under anesthesia is performed by an orthopedist skilled at stretching and maneuvering parts of the body to break up scar tissue “adhesions” in major joint locations such as elbow, knee, pelvis and shoulder.
Kneecap Surgery
The kneecap is a flat, triangular-shaped bone that protects the knee joint and helps muscles move your leg more efficiently. A healthy kneecap glides up and down a groove at the end of the thigh bone.
Meniscectomy
The goal of this surgery for a torn meniscus is to remove part or the entire damaged meniscus. The type of procedure is determined by the pattern, location and size of the tear and your health status.
Meniscus Repair
Some meniscal tears can be repaired by suturing (stitching) the torn pieces together. Whether a tear can be successfully treated with repair depends upon the type of tear, as well as the overall condition of the injured meniscus.
Platelet-Rich Plasma Treatment
One of the newest treatments for various orthopaedic problems and injuries ranging from sprained knees to chronic tendon injuries is platelet-rich plasma, or PRP.
Regenerative Medicine Treatment
For people who have tried a variety of nonsurgical pain management treatments and traditional pain-relief methods, such as physical therapy and steroidal injections—yet have not experienced sufficient pain relief—it may be time to consider regenerative medicine treatments.
Repair Labral Tears in the Hip
The labrum may tear due to repetitive use such as in certain sports like ice hockey, ballet or soccer. A tear may also occur as the result of an injury or because of a structural abnormality such as hip dysplasia.
Repair of Tears to the TFCC in the Wrist
Called TFCC, this cartilage is the cushioning ligament in the wrist between the ulna and radius bones that can be torn during a fall on an outstretched hand.
Rotator Cuff Surgery
Minimally invasive rotator cuff surgery is our expertise. Find out from the orthopaedic experts at Main Line Health about the latest treatment options to repair a rotator cuff tear.
Shoulder Tear Repair
During arthroscopic surgery, the doctor will examine the rim and the biceps tendon. If the injury is confined to the rim itself, without involving the tendon, the shoulder is still stable.
Spine Surgery
Our spine surgery specialists are academically trained in advanced techniques and perform a high volume of surgeries using the latest technologies.
Hand Tendon Repair
People who are severely affected by rheumatoid arthritis, infection, overuse or injury may develop a condition that involves the long tendons on the back of the hand — called dorsal tenosynovitis, inflammation of the lining of the sheath that surrounds the tendon.
Tendon Transfer Surgery
This procedure helps restore hand function after a spinal injury by giving working muscles different jobs.
Tennis and Golf Elbow Surgery
These painful conditions that occur when the tendons in your elbow are overworked and damaged, from repetitive movement of the arm and wrist respond to non-operative treatment techniques such as injection with Platelet Rich Plasma or minimal incision radiofrequency tendon debridement.
Trigger Finger Release
Release is provided by dividing the tendon sheath. In traditional surgery, this required an open incision in the palm of the hand.
Wrist Fracture Repair
Sometimes there are small fragments of bone that stay within the joint after a bone breaks, and these need to be removed, or the bones may need to be aligned and stabilized with pins, wires or screws.