Patient Profile Attending a Sports Medicine Center

Abstract

Objective: To investigate admissions to a sports medicine polyclinic in order to demonstrate the regional patient profile.
Materials and Methods: Data (n: 2474) pertaining to athletes/patients who were admitted to the sports medicine polyclinic were evaluated using their digital files. The “Daily Report on Injuries and Illnesses” form put out by the International Olympic Committee was used for the classification of illnesses and injuries.
Results: Among the participants, 70.2% were males; 95% of the applicants were athletes, with 74.1% of the participants being under the age of 18. Most of the applications (44.5%) were made during winter. About 63.0% of the participants applied for licensing examination, 35.9% due to injuries and illnesses, and 1.1% to receive medical support. While the most frequent reason for athletes’ application was license examination, sedentary individuals largely applied due to injuries (p<0.05). Injuries mostly affected the lower extremities, whereas disease symptoms mainly involved the cardiovascular system. Most injuries had occurred during training, and conservative methods tended to be used for treatment.
Conclusions: Licensing examinations should be carried out in primary health care facilities. Performance analysis should be performed through equipments used in the field of sports medicine. Conservative treatment units should be established. Lastly, it is crucial that sports medicine specialists increase their role in the fight against chronic diseases experienced by sedentary people.

Cite this article as: Ercan S. Patient profile attending a sports medicine center. Turk J Sports Med. 2019;54(2):124-32.