Sports Medicine

What is sports medicine?

Sports medicine focuses on diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of injuries in the musculoskeletal system. Most sports injuries happen while playing sports, exercising, or training, or being physically active in some other way.

At Bay Area Foot and Ankle Medical Clinic, Dr. Guan treats sports injuries within the bones, tendons, ligaments, cartilage, and muscles in your feet and ankles. This is an especially important aspect of sports medicine since you need your feet and ankles not only to perform in athletics but also to function in daily life.

What are the most common foot and ankle sports injuries?

Since many sports require constant use of your feet and ankles, it's not a surprise that so many sports injuries affect the lower extremities. Some of the most common of these podiatric sports injuries include:

• Ankle fractures
• Ankle sprains
• Achilles tendinitis
• Achilles tendon rupture
• Toe fractures
• Turf toe
• Foot and ankle stress fractures
• Lisfranc (midfoot) fractures 
• Plantar fasciitis

These injuries can occur in a variety of ways. A bad landing after a jump, missteps, accidental collisions, and overuse are all common ways to injure your feet or ankles.

What is the sports medicine diagnostic process?

At Bay Area Foot and Ankle Medical Clinic, Dr. Guan examines your injury and reviews the circumstances surrounding it as well as your symptoms. During your exam, Dr. Guan may ask you to flex your foot, stand, or walk a short distance, if you're able. 

Using all of the information from this assessment, he can make a diagnosis. Or, he may recommend X-ray imaging to rule out or confirm problems like broken bones. 

What does a sports medicine treatment plan include?

Bay Area Foot and Ankle Medical Clinic offers all-encompassing sports medicine care for foot and ankle injuries. Early treatment typically includes nonsurgical care, such as:

• Rest
• Activity changes
• Custom orthotics
• Splinting or bracing
• Physical therapy
• Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory medications
• Corticosteroid injections 
• Platelet-rich plasma (PRP) injections

For a severe foot or ankle sports injury, you may need surgery. Dr. Guan uses the newest cutting-edge technology and surgical methods to perform minimally invasive foot and ankle surgeries like fracture repair, tendon repair, and even complex foot and ankle reconstruction. 

Treating a sports injury as soon as it happens is crucial to preventing complications like post-traumatic arthritis or chronic ankle instability. For immediate sports medicine care from a podiatry specialist, call Bay Area Foot and Ankle Medical Clinic or click the online scheduling link.