Health Talk - All about sports injuries and common orthopedic issues

As a fitness enthusiast, I feel strongly about topics relating to health, body and fitness in general, so when Chris proposed me for this Orthopedic talk by OrthoSports Clinic, I accepted it immediately. I’ve had many friends and clients who have had orthopedic surgery and so many horror stories about the various injuries because of ligament and tendon tears. Coincidentally, I was recovering from my tendon repair surgery and so I attended the talk with some burning questions in mind hoping to get some answers.

OrthoSports Clinic

OrthoSports Clinic is situated at Mount Elizabeth Novena and offers specialized services for patients with sports and non-sports related orthopedic issues. A recognized clinic in Singapore, the orthopedic specialists and surgeons work with individuals who suffer from knee and shoulder problems as well as sports injuries. They work very closely with a team of physiotherapists too, to assure the best possible rehabilitation regimes. In cases where surgeries are needed, they perform them via arthroscopic (keyhole) or the minimal invasive surgery.

OrthoSports Talk

The talk was given by the 3 surgeons from the clinic and they covered 3 main topics, sports injuries, osteoporosis, and foot issues (heel spurs, bunions and flat feet).

Sports Injuries

Dr Ang Kian Chuan covered sports injuries and highlighted some of the common injuries suffered during accidents while doing a particular sports or extreme sports. I’ve had clients who have had surgery done prior to training with me and so I know the importance of muscles strengthening work around the injured area to aid in recovery post surgery. What a lot of people don’t know is exactly this. Strengthening the muscles around the injured areas is very crucial to prevent subsequent problems on the same injured area. Of course, you need to only be able to do muscle-strengthening exercises once you regain your range of motion and always check with your doctors and physiotherapists.

Osteoporosis

Dr David Paul Bell covered the topic of Osteoporosis, which I was pretty concerned about. Generally, women begin an expedited process of bone degeneration from the age of 50 onwards. However in recent years, we also noticed men facing bone issues as early as women do. Calcium is a mineral that is best consumed and absorbed during the building years. Vitamin D also contributes to the health and strength of our bones.

So I asked Dr David Bell if its too late to be stocking my body with Calcium and Vitamin D now that I’m moving into my 30s. He mentioned that though it may be too late to push that age of bone degeneration to a later age, it can definitely postpone the effects of it. So if you are below the age of 29 and are reading this, please have balanced diet especially with more calcium and Vitamin D! :P 


Heel spurs, Flatfeet & Bunions

Dr Tan Ken Jin covered another pressing issue in Singapore and showed us some examples of how these conditions look like. These issues do not only occur with the old, Dr Tan shared some of his younger patients who are as young as 12 years old and they can be treated with minimal scars! Feel free to contact the clinic if you happen to know of somebody who is suffering from these problems. 

Heel Spurs

A heel spur is a pointed bony outgrowth of the bone of the heel (the calcaneus bone). They are attributed to chronic local inflammation at the insertion of soft-tissue tendons or fascia in the area. Heel spurs can be located at the back of the heel or under the heel, beneath the sole of the foot. Heel spurs at the back of the heel are frequently associated with inflammation of the Achilles tendon (tendinitis) and cause tenderness and pain at the back of the heel made worse while pushing off the ball of the foot.

I was pretty interested in this because I’ve heard of heel spurs related to plantar fasciitis, which has occurred to me before and reoccurred since I started wearing the air boot during the recovery of my injury. Proper massaging of the fascia, stretching of the calf muscles and icing my Achilles tendon (since I’ve been suspected of tendonitis on the right Achilles tendon) when I feel the ache have elevated the discomfort tremendously.

Flatfeet

If you think you have flatfeet or flatfoot, it is when the arches on the inside of your foot is flattened, allowing the entire sole of your foot to touch the floor when you stand up. A common and usually painless condition, flatfeet can occur when the arches don't develop during childhood. In other cases, flatfeet develop after an injury or from the simple wear-and-tear stresses of age.

Flatfeet can sometimes contribute to problems in your ankles and knees because the condition can alter the alignment of your legs. The weight shift causes excessive pronation of your foot and often leads to more serious problems as the person ages with weight gain.

Bunions

Photo credit: huffingtonpost.com (Dr Neal Blitz)

Bunions are bony bumps that develop at the joint of the big toe. They may be painless or aching, slightly unsightly or increasingly deforming. Bunions widen feet and narrow shoe choices, dooming people to a lifetime of sensible flats with roomy toe boxes. For some people, bunions are no bother, but for others, bunions hamper mobility, reduce activity and affect their quality of life.

We ended the session with food and refreshments kindly catered by the clinic and I’m glad to be able to learn so much from it!

from left to right: Dr David Bell, Dr Ang and Dr Tan

I hope I covered a good summary of some of the orthopedic issues that what you think you or your friends and family are facing. Feel free to find out more on OrthoSports’ fb page (https://www.facebook.com/orthosports.sg/?fref=ts) or their website (http://www.orthosports.com.sg/).

OrthoSports Novena

38 Irrawaddy Road

#10-41

Mount Elizabeth Novena Specialist Centre

Singapore 329563 

Tel: 6734 8168

OrthoSports Connexion

1 Farrer Park Station Road

#15-17 Connexion 

Singapore 217562 

Tel: 6435 0015