For many of us, the words "sports medicine" conjure up images of an athletics trainer taping the ankle of an Olympic gymnast or of a surgeon assessing whether a star quarterback's knee is strong enough for the big game. The behind-the-scenes medical team that cares for high-profile players rarely makes the news, but in the world of health care, sports medicine is a rising star in its own right.
Once limited to mostly male practitioners treating professional athletes, the field has grown to include an equal number of male and female practitioners who specialize in all areas where sports, physical activity and health connect. The surgical and rehabilitative advances in sports medicine in the United States have expanded to serve a much broader portion of the population.
Working a high-profile event, such as the Tour de Georgia cycling race or an Atlanta Falcons game, is the sexy part of sports medicine.
"Yet the vast majority of our patients will not be professional athletes," said Dr. Spero G. Karas of the Emory Sports Medicine Center.
Ted Hanson, a physical therapist at the Medical College of Georgia Sports Medicine Center in Augusta, said that one of the greatest rewards of his job is hearing that former patients are back in the game. He recently read that a former patient was back playing baseball at Augusta State University.
"He had a good game and got two hits. It made me feel good," Hanson said.
It makes Hanson feel just as good when his patients tell him that they're gardening or taking care of their grandkids again. Sometimes, the game is baseball; more often, it's life.
As Bryan Jones, certified athletic trainer at MCG Sports Medicine, pointed out, "a ligament tear is the same injury, whether you get it on the football field or raking leaves."
People who seek treatment from sports medicine centers expect to find the most progressive surgical and rehabilitative methods; they aren't disappointed.
You can read more about how we all benefit from advances in sports medicine in this month's cover story.
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