Chiropractic for Sports Injuries and Improved Performance

In recent years high school sports are getting more serious because the stakes are higher. With scholarships for college and the lure of fame and fortune of the professional athlete kids are training at higher levels of intensity and more frequently so that they can play at that more elite level during game time. Unfortunately even with the advent of more technologically advanced safety equipment harder play means more injuries. It is estimated that 30 million children now participate in organized sports including soccer, football, swimming, gymnastics, hockey, skating and baseball. Correspondingly, as participation increases, injuries increase. Sports injuries to young people now exceed the occurrence of infectious disease. ¹

There is help. With the introduction of sports chiropractic, kids can not only prevent injuries but improve performance. Because doctors of chiropractic are experts in the field of human biomechanics, they are very aware of proper posture and movement. A chiropractor that has undergone extra training in sports chiropractic can observe an athlete in action, detect, and prevent a structural problem that can lead to injury or poor performance. Athletic injures are often caused by improper biomechanics or muscle imbalances within the body that can be corrected or at least strengthened by adjustments and balance training of the affected joint. And chiropractic isn’t just for the back anymore, it’s commonplace in a sports clinic to be treating rotator cuff injuries, tennis elbow, plantar fasciitis, and ankle sprains to name a few.

The opposite side of the coin is performance. Sports chiropractic has made a name for itself among the elite athletes. The US Olympic Team keeps two sports certified chiropractors on staff during competition. 31 percent of NFL teams use chiropractors in an official capacity as part of their staffs and a full 77 percent of the trainers have referred to a chiropractor for evaluation or treatment. A survey of certified NFL trainers revealed that 100 percent of them agree that players will use chiropractic care without referral from the team medical staff. ²

In another study Chiropractic's "winning edge" was tested on fifty athletes who were divided into a control group and a group which added Chiropractic care to their usual training procedures. At six weeks, the group under Chiropractic care scored significantly better on standard tests of athletic ability. When tested on their reaction time, the control group demonstrated less than one percent improvement, while the Chiropractic group achieved reaction times more than eighteen percent faster than their initial scores. ³

Additionally a Canadian research team included Chiropractic care in the rehabilitation program of sixteen injured female long distance runners. Not only did these runners recover quickly, seven of them actually scored "personal best" performances while under Chiropractic care. ⁴

At We Care Chiropractic in Penn Hills, Dr. Thomas F. Antonucci went through an additional 10 month program and exam to get certified by the American Chiropractic Board of Sports Physicians (ACBSP), the same national board that certifies our US Olympic Team chiropractors, to sports specifically treat athletes using chiropractic, nutrition, and physical therapy.

If you’re interested in treating an existing injury, preventing injuries, or taking your performance to the next level call for an appointment at 412-795-2900 or email to drtantonucci@wcchiropractic.com.

Thomas F. Antonucci, DC, CCSP