As a Certified Chiropractic Sports Physician since 2006, and has been both the owner and associate of a “Sports Chiropractic” or “Sports Medicine” office, I am often asked if I treat non-athletes. While I understand how the office name or my credentials can lead people to think I may only focus on athletes—which is my specialty--what everyone needs to realize is that you don't have to be an athlete to have athletic injuries.
Most commonly, athletic injuries are overuse injuries, sprains, or strains. A sprain is a damage to a ligament (connects bone to bone). A strain is a damage to a muscle or tendon (connects muscle to bone). Overuse injuries are the accumulation of mini-tears in the muscle or tendon fibers that accumulate with repetition of motion over time. The only difference between an athletic injury and what I like to call an “athletic-type” injury is when, where, and how the injury occurred.
You can sprain your ankle stepping off of the curb awkwardly in front of the grocery store, or you can do it while playing soccer, or trail running. Of the hundreds of cases of “tennis elbow” (aka, lateral epicondylitis) I've treated over the years, perhaps 15% max actually played tennis. Turning a wrench, typing/using a mouse at a computer, painting, and even drumming are all causes of overuse injuries that I have treated as “tennis elbow”.
The benefit of having a Sports Chiropractor evaluate your painful condition/injury is that we're trained to recognize the tissues affected, diagnose the condition, direct the treatment, and provide you with preventative exercises/stretches to avoid the future aggravation of the symptoms. We address both the joint component and the soft tissue component of the injury which provides for a more complete and speedy recovery.
If you have an injury you believe needs evaluation by a trained specialist—whether it occurred crashing on the ski slopes, or slipping on ice in the parking lot on your way back to the car—do not hesitate to contact us at Evergreen Spine & Sports Medicine where we treat professional athletes, weekend warriors, and non-athletes the same!
Originally posted on April 18, 2016
Original author: Maya Gonzales, DC