Are your knees in pain?

If you are active in sports like running, soccer, cycling, skiing, and the like, there is a chance that you'd experience what is commonly called as Runners Knee or Patellofemoral Pain Syndrome. The causes are usually cartilage damage due to overuse, misalignment, and chronic knee cap dislocation among many. Some of the symptoms are pain under and around the knee caps, swelling, and pain while walking, kneeling, or squatting.

Although many surgeons prefer to resort to non-surgical treatments like physical therapy and medication, there are some cases that will really require surgery. One usual treatment is the lateral release of the knee. During the procedure, orthopedic surgeons cut out tight tissue on the lateral side of the knee cap, which allows the patella to slide down to the center of the femoral groove. If there is any damage in the cartilage, surgeons also do repairs during this surgery to avoid any problems in the future.

How is recovery like? This surgery is minimally invasive, which means that healing time is shorter. Also, post-surgery, orthopedic surgeons will only usually recommend physical therapy that will aid in healing and strengthening the knees as well.

So, if you feel that something isn't right with your knees, go to the nearest orthopedic clinic in Asheboro NC and consult with a doctor. Remember that early detection of injuries will be easier to fix!

What is the Rotator Cuff Impingement Syndrome?

Do you feel pain when you life your arms? Do you hear a clicking sound when you do this motion? If you answered yes, you might have rotator cuff impingement syndrome. This is the irritation of the tendons and bursa, which reduces the range of motion, inflammation, and pain.

To treat this injury, it is best to consult your doctor and ask about shoulder decompression. This is a minimal surgery wherein small incisions will be made around the shoulder. A small fiber-optic camera and other surgical tools will be inserted through the incisions then a portion of the acromion will be removed and minor repairs will be made on the rotator cuff. After the surgery, a program will be given to the patient, which will consist of medications, motion exercises, and strength exercises.

What will happen if you don't give your shoulder the attention it needs? If left on its own, this injury may develop into a more serious one, which will need a series of complicated surgeries. Not having it checked may also leave permanent damage on the rotator cuff.

To avoid any more damage, consult with your doctor right away! There are many clinics in Asheboro NC that caters to these injuries like Randolph Orthopedics and Sports Medicine.

Do you have chronic shoulder dislocation?

There are many people who suffer from chronic shoulder dislocation. However, this doesn't have to be a life-long problem. Orthopedic surgeons like those in Randolph Orthopedics and Sports Medicine can perform the Bankart's Repair.

Chronic shoulder dislocation is due to a loose joint, which slips and slides inside the socket. If this pursues, it may lead to dislocation. When a surgeon performs the Bankart's Repair, he/she tightens the ligaments and repairs the labrum. Surgeons make use of fiber-optic cameras and other surgical tools that are inserted through small incisions made around the shoulder. Damaged soft tissues and bone spurs are removed and rough edges are smoothed in this surgery. Loose ligaments are also shortened then reattached for joint stabilization. Suture anchors that dissolve in time are attached to the bone to aid in healing.

Patients can usually go home on the same day of the surgery. However, special care must be taken to help the shoulder heal. This means that the patient must have lots of rest and the shoulder should be immobilized.

Diagnosing meniscal tears in Asheboro NC

Meniscal tears are knee injuries common among athletes as well as non-athletes at almost any age and activity level. This type of injury often happens during sports when a player comes into contact with another player, and it can also occur in older adults whose menisci have weakened over time and with age. Even a motion as simple as twisting the wrong way when getting up from a chair may result in a meniscal tear for an elderly adult.

 

Symptoms of meniscal tear
Meniscal tears are often paired with a “popping” sound, much like ACL sprains and tears, however, many patients are able to continue walking. Over a few days, the knee will become stiff and swollen, and motion become limited. Common symptoms of meniscal tears include pain, swelling, a locking of the knee joint, and the knee “giving way.”

 

Physical exam and imaging tests

Meniscal tears often appear as common knee injuries. Diagnosing meniscal tears involve tests such as the McMurray test, a bending, straightening and rotating of the knee. The distinct “clicking” sound each time the knee moves is a telltale sign of meniscal tears. To rule out the possibility of other knee injuries, sports medicine doctors may order visual tests such as an X-ray or MRI before making a diagnosis.

 

If immediate treatment for meniscal tears is not sought, the meniscus can loosen and float into the joint, causing the knee to slip, pop, or lock. Serious complications brought by this type of injury can be avoided by consulting with sports medicine doctors or orthopedic surgeons at Randolph Orthopedics and Sports Medicine in Asheboro NC.

Common symptoms of ligament sprains and strains

Our body moves when muscles contract and make joints flex, extend, and rotate. A strain occurs when the muscle tendon is stretched or torn. Overusing and stretching a muscle results in a strain to occur.

 

Ligaments allow our joints to move in specific directions. If a ligament is stretched or torn, the injury is called a sprain.

 

Here are the common symptoms of sprains and strains when you have them:

• Pain is always the first symptom that indicates that there is something wrong with the body. Through pain, the brain is warned that a muscle or joint should be protected from further harm. In work, exercise, or sport, the pain may be felt after a particular incident or it may gradually progress after many repetitions of a motion. 
• Swelling is another symptom of sprain or strain and usually comes with an injury, although it may take some time for it to be noticed. When fibers of a ligament, muscle, or tendon are damaged, bleeding such as bruising on the surface of the skin can occur. 
• The pain and swelling cause the body to protect the injured part. As a result,you may find it difficult to use the injured part of your body. For example, you cannot use your injured leg without limping.

Ligament sprains and strains are injuries that may or may not require surgery. For a complete examination of a ligament injury, orthopedic experts at Randolph Orthopedics and Sports Medicine can make a professional recommendation as well advice for treatment.

Not all orthopedic surgeons are the same

When an athlete is injured in a game, chances are the person who rushes to the scene is an orthopedic surgeon. When a geriatric patient slipped and hurt himself, the likely medical practitioner to assist him is an orthopedic doctor. Children who might have some musculoskeletal defect at birth would need an orthopedic practitioner for both treatment and rehabilitation.

Although orthopedic surgeons deal with the same thing --- any medical conditions that has to do with the bones and muscles, they have different specializations. The field of orthopedics is so diverse that medical professionals who are practicing them can perform treatment as well as rehabilitation measures. They can also treat very young people as well as geriatric patients whose bones have become brittle in age.

The education and general trainings that orthopedic surgeons go through basically run in the same vein. The process takes a bit longer particularly if the medical student would want to specialize in a particular field, like sports medicine, for instance. All medical practitioners who want to practice must have the expertise needed to be called an orthopedic surgeon.

Since the field is varied, specialization trainings will largely depend on the field that a particular medical professional wants to practice. The choices range from the treatment of a specific musculoskeletal condition to the rehabilitation of the patient after the treatment. There will also be those highly specialized orthopedic doctors who are trained in the field of sports medicine.

Orthopedic surgeons may have gone through the same basic trainings but once they have their own field of expertise, the trainings that they undergo will be very different. Everything will depend on their field of specialization.

Do You Know These Facts About Sports Medicine Doctors?

Sports medicine is an area of health and special services that deals with the prevention, diagnosis, management and rehabilitation of injuries related to sports, exercise or recreational activities.

Sports medicine doctors are non-surgical primary care physicians that specialize in the non-operative medical treatment of musculoskeletal sports conditions or orthopedic surgeons who are trained in primary care as well as surgical treatment for musculoskeletal sports conditions. The American Medical Society for Sports Medicine (AMSSM) was founded in 1991 as a multi-disciplinary organization of physicians in the field of sports medicine.

Sports medicine doctors specialize in musculoskeletal injuries, asthma, hypertension, and diabetes in athletes as well as non-athletic but active persons including students at any level.

The most common sports-related injuries include ankle sprains, muscle strains, knee shoulder injuries, tendonitis and stress fractures. Mild traumatic brain injury or less severe issues such as nutrition and exercise to improve fitness levels are also within the scope of care of sports medicine doctors.

For more information about sports medicine or for a consultation with a sports medicine doctor, you may visit Randolph Orthopedics and Sports Medicine clinic in Asheboro, NC or call 336-626-2688 for an appointment.