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Diagnosing Common Sports Injuries

Diagnosing Common Sports Injuries
Diagnosing Common Sports Injuries

Did you know that  8.6 million people are injured each year while engaging in physical activities1? A third of these injuries are sports-related.

Medical imaging has a vital role in diagnosing sports injuries. Optimal outcomes for sports injuries are dependent on the timely use of imaging for diagnosing purposes. Imaging is critical to the confirmation and assessment of a sport-related injury and will assist in the management and prognosis of the injured.

Ultrasonography, X-ray, and MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) are currently the most frequently applied techniques in sports medicine.

  • Ultrasounds are cheaper and faster than magnetic resonance imaging (MRI); they are a safe and dependable way to image superficial soft tissue.
  • X-ray plays a significant part in diagnosing and managing sports injuries, primarily because of its wider availability and quick turnaround. An X-ray is an essential and quick step to rule out a significant bony injury with displacement when a fracture or dislocation is suspected after a sports injury.
  • MRI provides a comprehensive, panoramic, and multi-planar image of both superficial and deep soft-tissue structures. MRI is used to determine the extent and severity of injury for guiding management.

Imaging plays an increasingly important role in the initial evaluation and diagnosis of sports injuries. Sports physicians and musculoskeletal radiologists collaborate for the optimal management of an injured athlete. New and improved medical imaging techniques emerged over the last two decades and have significantly expanded the ability to non-invasively explore complex anatomical structures.  Diagnosis of sports related injuries with imaging can help getting athletes back in the game sooner.

Our Houston MRI ® & Diagnostic Imaging mission is to provide the patients and physicians with affordable medical diagnostic imaging in a warm and patient-friendly environment. It is our goal to make the medical imaging procedure as pleasant as possible. Our promise to our community is "hospital quality imaging without the hospital costs" with efficient service to both our patients and physicians.

1https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/12606871/