The fear of all athletes is the fear of sustaining a sports injury, whether on the field, court, ring, or track. Bad injuries not only sideline you from play, but they can lead to lasting damage if left untreated. This could be a career ender if you’re a professional athlete. If you’re a weekend warrior or school athlete, this could keep you off the field and prevent you from doing what you love.
All the training and conditioning in the world isn’t a guarantee that you won’t be injured playing the game. It’s important as an athlete to know which sports injuries are the most common and how you can best treat them so you can get back out there and enjoy that competitive spirit again.
Thankfully, drugs and surgery aren’t the only options – a good thing for athletes who consider their health and bodies as their greatest assets. There are minimally invasive treatments out there involving regenerative medicine that can help you bounce back after a sports injury – drug-free and without long recovery times.
Common Injuries Affecting Athletes
Here’s a look at the most common injuries that athletes face no matter what sports they’re involved in.
1. ACL Tear or Strain
It’s easy to strain or tear your ACL when pivoting or quickly changing directions mid-stride. The ACL is a critical stabilizing ligament in the knee, and even the slightest tear or sprain can be very painful. While full tears will require traditional surgery to fix, many minor ACL injuries, such as slight tears, will heal with plenty of rest, physical therapy, and stem cell therapy to alleviate knee pain.
2. Sciatica
This condition often plagues athletes such as golfers or cyclists who undergo frequent trunk rotations or who must maintain forward postures for long periods of time. Sciatica results in burning or numbness in the back and legs, which can be treated with medication, nerve blocks, steroid injections, and other non-surgical back pain management treatments.
3. Shoulder Injuries
Shoulder injuries are another common type of injury sustained by athletes, whether due to strain, overuse, or dislocation. Because it’s the weakest joint in the body, shoulders are susceptible to sports injuries, especially in sports that require repeated hitting or upper body movements (swimming and tennis) or harsh body impacts (football and hockey). Ice and rest can help heal minor shoulder injuries, but chronic shoulder pain is best healed through physical therapy, steroid injections, and non-steroidal anti-inflammatories.
4. Tennis and Golf Elbow
Tennis and golf both require repetitive actions, along with heavy gripping. This causes the tendon in the forearm or wrist to become inflamed and painful. In minor cases, anti-inflammatory medications or braces can help, but with severe injuries, physical therapy and other pain management therapies such as regenerative medicine treatments will be needed.
Contact Michigan Center for Regenerative Medicine For Non-Surgical Pain Therapies
If you have been injured playing sports and have persistent pain, we have treatments that can help. Call us at (248) 301-0161 to learn the benefits of regenerative medicine for athletic injuries.