Dr. James Gasparine has been a fan of sports his entire life. Maybe that’s why, in his sports medicine practice, he most enjoys working with athletes and getting them back to action as soon as possible.

His expertise ranges in a variety of sports-related injuries from strains to fractures, to expertise in concussion management and osteoporosis. The most common injuries Dr. Gasparine deals with are muscle strains, fractures, concussions and osteoarthritis flare-ups.

Dr. Gasparine believes the three biggest advancements in sports medicine are the management of concussions, diagnostic ultrasounds and osteoporosis. The most rewarding part of his job is seeing his patient get back to playing the sports they love.

Outside of Orthopaedic Associates of Zanesville, Dr. Gasparine enjoys weightlifting, the outdoors and playing the piano.

His favorite industry-related website is the American Medical Society for Sports Medicine.

During Dr. Gasparine’s fellowship at West Virginia University, he concentrated on nutrition and weight loss, focusing on proper diet and supplemental intake with athletes and working with wrestlers to achieve proper weight in a safe way.

ACL injuries are a common injury we treat at Orthopaedic Associates of Zanesville. ACL stands for anterior cruciate ligament and an ACL injury is a tear in one of the knee ligaments that joins the upper leg bone with the lower leg bone. ACLs keep the knee stable.

A common question from patients with a common injury is when can they safely get back to playing sports or participating in the activities they like.

We have included a clip from ABC News about returning to sports or athletic activities after an ACL injury. Sherwin Ho, M.D., at the University Chicago Medical Center explains.

Returning to Sports after an ACL injury

Just like sports medicine, physical therapy began in ancient Greece. Hippocrates, an ancient Greek physician and a prominent figure in the history of medicine, advocated for massage and Hector used water therapy.

The earliest documents of physical therapy only date back to 1894 when English nurses formed the Chartered Society for Physiotherapy.

Physical therapy began in the U.S. in 1914 at Reed College in Portland, Oregon. The first known graduates of a physical therapy program were known as reconstructive aides.

Like other medical professions, research is an important aspect of physical therapy. The first published research of physical therapy was in 1921 in The PT Review.

1921 – The year the American Women’s Physical Therapeutic Association was founded. Association changed to the American Physiotherapy Association in the 1930′s and officially became the American Physical Therapy Association in the late 1940′s. Educational institutions began establishing standards and programs became accredited.

1924 – Georgia Warm Springs Foundation came into existence and emphasized working on physical therapy related to polio.

1940’s – Physical therapy mainly consisted of exercise, massage and traction.

1950’s – Therapists started to move beyond hospitals.

1974 – Specialization in physical therapy started. The APTA formed an Orthopaedic section for those physical therapists focusing on the practice of orthopaedics.

1980’s – Technology and computers lead to more advances in rehabilitation. Computerized modalities, ultrasound and electric simulators are technologies that helped advance the practice of physical therapy.

1990’s – Attention to manual therapy and formal residency programs are becoming more numerous.

If you’re interested in finding out more about physical therapy and what we do here at OAZ, please contact the office.

A few years ago, TIME magazine had an article on a brief history of sports medicine. Physicians here at Orthopaedic Associates of Zanesville focus on sports medicine. Merriam-Webster defines sports medicine as: A field of medicine concerned with the prevention and treatment of injuries and disorders that are related to participation in sports. The term was first used in 1961, only 50 years ago.

Physicians that specialize in sports medicine emphasize enhancing fitness levels and overall health of the larger population through diet and exercise. As we know from high school English class, ancient Greeks celebrated athletes. Herodicus is sometimes referred to the first doctor of athletic medicine. Other ancient Greeks responsible for helping athletes were Hippocrates who spent time treating injuries and helping athletes in competition and Claudius Galen, who was a primary physician for gladiators. Over the next few centuries, the idea and practice of sports medicine all but disappeared.

It wasn’t until the early 20^th century that sports medicine started to become popular. One of the first physicians responsible for sports medicine was A.V. Hill, who won the Nobel Prize of Physiology in 1922. Dr. Hill was awarded the prize for the discovery relating to the production of heat in the muscle.

During the 1968 Summer Olympics, Dr. J.C. Kennedy organized a team of doctors to travel with the athletes to make sure they were well cared for. Dr. Kennedy was also the founder of the Canadian Academy of Sport Medicine.

What sets sports medicine apart from other areas of medicine is physicians are proactive in the treatment options of athletes. Sports medicine physicians don’t wait until an injury occurs, but we aim to continuously minimize risk in athletes to achieve best results.

If you’re interested in learning more about sports medicine, please contact our office. For your daily dose of OAZ information, follow us on Twitter: @OrthoZane.

Here at the Orthopaedic Associates of Zanesville, many of our patients have tendinitis. Tendinitis is a common injury associated with weight lifting.

Tendinitis

Tendinitis can be found in the biceps, triceps, Achilles, shoulder and patella, just to name a few places. It’s an irritation or inflammation of the tendon, the thick band that attaches bone to muscle. Anyone can get tendinitis but it is most common in adults over the age of 40. Tendons age and as a result they

• Tolerate less stress
• Become less elastic
• Tear more easily

To avoid tendinitis, try the following:

• Start slow when starting a new activity and gradually build your level
• Use limited force and limited repetitions
• Stop if unusual pain occurs

Home remedies for treating include:

• Avoiding activities that aggravate the problem area
• Rest
• Ice
• Taking anti-inflammatory drugs

As always, the physicians here at OAZ suggest seeing a doctor if the pain persists because if you ignore the problem for too long, it can cause an even greater one.