Sports Medicine
Sports Medicine
The world of Sports Medicine covers a broad spectrum of people, from the weekend warrior to the Olympic athlete. The common bond between all of these athletes is dedication to health and fitness. Being a former collegiate athlete, Dr. Martin understands both the drive and motivation behind being an athlete and loving your sport. Given the complex nature of caring for athletes, finding a physician that is experienced with common sports-related injuries is critical to healing quickly and returning to play as soon as possible.
At Spine & Joint Solutions, Dr. Martin takes great pride in working with injured athletes. She is fellowship-trained in Sports Medicine, which gives her a higher level of understanding of injuries, as well as additional higher-level treatment options. Injuries treated can range from simple strains and sprains to more severe joint and spine issues. In addition to working directly with an athlete, it is important to work with other members of the athletic team that surround the injured athlete such as a team physician, coach, athletic trainer and physical therapist.
Any injury that keeps an athlete from playing is an important one. A proper evaluation should be performed and an accurate diagnosis made. At that point, a discussion about what treatment options are available and what the best treatment option for that particular athlete is can be pursued. Typical treatment options could include basic medication management and oversight of an appropriate rehabilitation program that progressively returns an athlete to his/her sport. For more significant injuries, interventional treatment can be considered, including injection therapy. The most advanced form of injection therapy available platelet-rich fibrin (PRF). PRF therapy has been used by athletes to speed the healing process and quicken return-to-play. Athletes, even at the professional level, have had profound success with Regenerative Medicine products, and more athletes are choosing to be treated conservatively with products from their own body to heal the injury instead of pursuing surgery followed by a lengthy recovery period. Regenerative Medicine products have gained more respect and are quickly becoming noticed within Sports Medicine as an appropriately aggressive treatment option for most injuries that are suffered during play. The recovery time is faster, and the healing more complete, which translates into fewer days on the bench. In the world of sports, every day counts!