SoCal Flipbooks

10 | Health Matters: Providence Cedars-Sinai Tarzana Medical Center Y ou might think of a sports medicine physician as a doctor who just treats people who get injured during physical activity, whether they are professional athletes, weekend warriors or occasional runners. In fact, they are specialists who first complete a residency in primary care medicine, followed by a fellowship in nonsurgical sports medicine. This training qualifies them to diagnose and treat any number of other conditions besides sports injuries in both adults and children. To shed more light on the role of primary care sports medicine physicians, we spoke with Byron O. Patterson, MD, a medical director of the Orthopedics and Sports Medicine Institute at Providence of Southern California, and CEO of Primary Care Sports Medicine, AMC. Most people think that an orthopedic physician and a sports medicine specialist are the same. What is the actual difference between them? Orthopedic specialists are trained to manage injuries and other musculoskeletal conditions surgically, while primary care sports medicine physicians are trained to successfully treat 90 percent of injuries without surgery. We also serve as a conduit, or gatekeeper, by assessing, diagnosing and referring patients to specialists in other fields when necessary. For example, if someone experiences chest pain during exercise, we will determine if they have a pectoralis muscle strain or a heart issue and need to see a cardiologist. We might refer someone who has an asthma attack while working out to a pulmonologist. Someone who suffers a concussion may be referred to a neurologist. And a person with knee or other joint pain might be found to be suffering from gout and need to be treated by a rheumatologist. What types of injuries do sports medicine physicians treat most often? The Sports Medicine Specialist Ninety percent of activity- related injuries can be treated without surgery by specialists at Providence Cedars-Sinai Tarzana Medical Center.

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