Sports Chiropractors in Tampa
From avid CrossFitters to weekend dabblers, marathon runners to occasional gym-goers, athletes of all levels and ages can benefit from sports chiropractic care. At Dr. Lichter and Associates, we see high school and college players, professional athletes and weekend warriors.
Make Chiropractic Part of Your Fitness Plan
A chiropractor’s job is to ensure the spine is functioning properly and the nervous system is operating as efficiently as possible to get you the most out of your workout.
Chiropractic care isn’t only about putting out the “fires” of pain and injuries, but also helps prevent those injuries. We’re witnessing that professional sports teams, including every NFL team, NHL team, and Major League Baseball team, all have chiropractors on their medical staff.
Another reason athletes use chiropractic is that it’s a natural way to relieve pain. Given the opioid epidemic in the country, many people don’t want to rely on dangerous painkillers to alleviate their discomfort.
What to Expect
We want you to know if you’re in the right place. That’s why Dr. Lichter or Dr. Banks will have you come in for a consultation, followed by an exam. If it’s a problem that we believe will respond to any of the modalities we provide in our office, we’ll make a treatment plan for you. We’ll let you know how long we think it will take and what we think it will cost.
If a week or two into care we observe there are no improvements, we may recommend you take a week or two off, or perhaps restrict your activity for a while until your body heals.
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Types of Injuries & How We Address Them
Here are some of the most common sports injuries we address at our Tampa practice:
The most common sports injury we see is rotator cuff tendonitis, which stems from posture—people tend to be more developed in the front of their body than on the back. We can treat rotator cuff tendonitis conservatively with modalities like laser and acupuncture, massage, and exercise.
For rotator cuff cases that don’t respond to conservative treatment, we’ll refer patients to an orthopedist for a cortisone injection.
This type of injury, common in soccer players, basketball players, and softball players, is usually due to an inversion injury from rolling their ankle. It ends up being a ligament injury on the outside of the ankle. Generally, it will take a few months to heal, and we tend to treat the symptoms, the swelling and pain with laser, cold packs and ultrasound.
With tennis elbow (lateral epicondylitis), 90% of the time the person has never played tennis in their life! The condition can evolve from other sports, such as hockey or baseball. Many times it’s not even from a sport, but can be from a hobby, such as knitting, or anything that involves working with your hands. Tennis elbow tends to respond well to bracing, laser therapy, acupuncture and physical therapy.
For knee issues, our first line of defense is exercise, in particular teaching the patient how to strengthen the inner quadriceps muscles and get the kneecap to track properly in its groove. At least 50% of the time, exercise alone will solve it.
We’ll Get You the Care You Need
We try to only accept cases that we believe are well-served by coming to our office. Because we want every patient to get the care that will get them results, we won’t hesitate to refer a patient to the right type of specialist, whether it’s a pain management doctor or an orthopedist.
Contact Dr. Lichter and Associates today to schedule an appointment!
