Sports Medicine

Whether you are injured while playing competitive sports or you have been hurt in an accident, it’s essential to seek treatment from a qualified orthopaedic sports medicine specialist.

Tampa Bay Spine & Sport specialists work as a team to diagnose and treat pain points thoroughly, utilizing sports medicine, interventional pain management, neurosurgery, physical therapy, chiropractic care, and PTSD counseling to address every aspect of a patient’s health and well-being.  

To schedule a consultation, please use our Appointment Request Form or call one of our Florida locations: 

Riverview: (813) 381-3852
St. Petersburg: (727) 898-3852

What is Sports Medicine?  

Sports medicine doctors specialize in diagnosing and treating sports and other injury-related conditions that cause pain with activity. Our team uses the same equipment and techniques ─ developed by some of the best NFL team doctors ─ to treat people who are injured at work or in an accident as he does for high level athletes. Most importantly, he always chooses conservative options before surgery.

When surgery is required, our team treats close to 90 percent of advanced shoulder and knee conditions arthroscopically. 

• With arthroscopy, a surgeon makes a small incision and inserts a small tool with a camera and light to find the problem in the joint. 
• Miniature surgical instruments are used to correct the issue. 
• This minimally invasive outpatient procedure allows patients to recover in two to four weeks vs. two to four months.

Knee Injury Diagnosis and Treatment 

First, we will determine if knee pain needs to be addressed surgically, or if it can be managed conservatively. We’ll start by asking questions about the history of your knee pain development? 

• Was there an injury?
• Has it been insidious, with a slow onset?
• Is there any history of major trauma or previous surgery? 
• Are there any mechanical issues, such as crunching, popping, or painful clicking?
• Does your knee feel lax or give out? 

A thorough history, followed by X-rays and MRIs, will help isolate the source of pain to determine treatment options. 

There are many conservative treatment options including: 

• Physical therapy
• Anti-inflammatory medications
• Creams and gels 
• Extracting fluid buildup
• Corticosteroid and gel injections to ease pain and swelling

Surgical Treatments for Knees 

When knee problems are severe, and they don’t respond to conservative pain management, it’s time to consider surgical options. 

• Knee arthroscopy allows doctors to view the knee joint without making a large incision, and use a camera and small surgical tools to remove or repair torn meniscus, cartilage flaps or ligaments.     
• Arthroscopic ACL reconstruction replaces a damaged anterior cruciate ligament, which provides stability in your knee, with a tissue graft from a donor (allograft) or your own body (autograft).
• Knee replacement may be the best option for bone-on-bone arthritis, or other issues that don’t respond to conservative treatments.   
• Unicompartmental, or partial knee replacement, works well for patients whose osteoarthritis is confined to one area. 

Addressing Shoulder Pain 

With conservative care, and highly competent surgery, many patients can get pain relief and recover from difficult shoulder problems. 

Shoulder Pain Treatment 

• First, we may prescribe anti-inflammatory medications and physical therapy.
• If the pain advances, this may be followed up by an MRI.
• We will discuss findings to make decisions based on pain control and severity of symptoms. 
• When surgery is necessary, we will discuss expectations, the need for therapy, and set a timetable for recovery so you can get back to doing what you love to do. 

Our team is highly skilled at treating shoulder pain: 

• Rotator cuff repairs restore shoulder strength and range of motion. The repaired tendon takes about six weeks to heal with pain management and rehabilitation.
• SLAP repairs fix tears in the labrum, a ring of cartilage that surrounds the shoulder joint socket, which leads to shoulder pain and instability.
• Separated shoulder treatment addresses issues with the AC joint, which connects the shoulder blade to the collar bone at the top of the shoulder. After trying physical therapy, rest, and modified activity, we may recommend an injection for patients with AC joint arthritis or a surgical repair to improve stability, relieve pain, and optimize shoulder function.
• A total shoulder replacement may be required if the pain and immobility in your shoulder caused by advanced arthritis is constant and other treatment options don’t offer relief.  

Our team also offers second opinions and helps with more complex revision procedures. 

Recovery

Recovery times will vary depending on the patient and type of injury. 

Following surgery, patients are given a nerve block that helps reduce pain for up to three days after surgery. Most patients will participate in physical therapy for approximately 3 months.