Sports Medicine: Boon for AthletesExcellence is not an act, but a habit. This holds true for any sportsperson as well as a sports injury specialist because there is a very narrow margin of error in the performance of both.Sports Medicine specialty deals with diagnosis and treatment of sports injuries. Although the specialty gained limelight in recent years, sports physicians have existed from ancient times. Galen (131 to 201 AD), a famous ancient physician was a team doctor for gladiators in the Pegamum Kingdom. A sports medicine doctor is trained in treating musculoskeletal injuries.TYPES OF INJURIESSports injuries primarily include ligament tears (ACL/PCL tears), fractures, recurrent dislocations including shoulder dislocation, rotator cuff injury, tennis elbow, pulled muscles, sprains and strains, Achilles Tendon injuries, frozen shoulder, shoulder impingement, hand injuries, mallet finger, trigger finger and trigger thumb. Almost all these injuries prevent the player from performing in professional and recreational sports.WHY A SPORTS INJURY PHYSICIAN?Delay in diagnosis and treatment of sports injuries always affects an athlete’s performance and career. A sports physician is specifically trained and equipped with the latest technology, expertise, knowledge and skills for treating such injuries. The sports physician will opt for a medical procedure which is important for faster and quicker recovery.Sometimes, there are two options to treat a particular injury – one is non-operative but requires more time for recovery, while the other is operative, but the healing process is faster. 

Under Total Knee Replacement Surgery, the parts of the bones that rub together are resurfaced with metal and plastic implants. Using special, precision instruments, the damaged surfaces of the bones are removed and replacement surfaces are fixed into place. The surface of the femur is replaced with a rounded metal component that comes very close to matching the curve of your natural bone. The surface of the tibia/leg bone is replaced with a smooth plastic component. This flat metal component holds a smooth plastic piece made of ultra-high-molecular weight polyethylene

of the femur {ball} and reline the acetabulum {socket/cup} with man-made components. There are various types of hip replacements and your surgeon would have discussed with you the type of prosthesis you are likely to receive.Although the metal-plastic combination is most commonly used, there are times when your surgeon will choose to use a different combination, such as highly crossed-linked plastic liner {a new form of plastic that is felt to be durable} with a metal or ceramic ball head; ceramic with ceramic

Complex/Complicated Trauma Centre of Excellence for Polytrauma (multiple fracture patient along with Pelvi-acetabular trauma and all kinds of joint fractures. 

Q. Is it possible to cure a patient who has disintegrated bone and has undergone treatment before?A. We at Fortis have a team of surgeons who have the maximum experience in North India in management of such patients. The latest techniques offered can give good results in around 85-90% of the cases. The patient needs to understand that these are very complex problems, which may require long treatment, multiple surgeries, and a small but certain percentage of failures (10%) despite best efforts.Acetabular FractureAn Acetabular fracture is a break in the socket portion of the “ball-and-socket” hip joint. These hip socket fractures are not common - they occur much less frequently than fractures of the upper femur or femoral head (the “ball’’ portion of the joint).The majority of acetabular fractures are caused by some typr high-energy event, such as a car collision. Many times patients will have additional injuries that require immediate treatment. In a smaller number of cases, a low-energy incident, such as a fall from standing, may cause an acetabular fracture in an older person who has weaker bones. Treatment for acetabular fractures often involves surgery to restore the normal anatomy of the hip and stabilize the hip joint.

Arthroscopy is a surgical procedure that allows surgeons to visualize, diagnose and treat problems inside a joint. In an arthroscopic examination, an orthopedic surgeon makes a small incision in the patient’s skin and then inserts pencil sized instruments that contain a small lens and lighting system to magnify and illuminate the structures inside the joint. Light is transmitted through fiber optics to the end of the arthroscope that is inserted into the joint. By attaching the arthroscope to a miniature television camera, the surgeon is able to see the interiors of the joint through this very small incision rather than making a large incision. The television camera attached to the arthroscope displays the image of the joint on a television screen, allowing the surgeon to look around the knee. The surgeon can determine the amount or type of injury, and then repair or correct the problem, if necessary.With development of better instrumentation and surgical techniques, many conditions today can be treated arthroscopically.