What are some challenges for sports medicine physicians?
RS: The biggest challenges are dealing with patients who have unrealistic goals. Young teenagers and college kids often think that they are invincible. The challenge is dealing with the physical and emotional strains of the injury. Sometimes with young kids, interacting with their parents is a challenge because they may expect their kids to earn college scholarships or become professional athletes. It’s always a bad thing when you ask a question to the kid and the parent answers continually. Q: Is there a difference between treating younger and older patients? RS: Older patients often have the same goals and return to sports as younger ones. They often have some degenerative changes in the joint as well as other medical issues. This must be taken into account when devising a treatment plan. But as the baby boomers are getting older, they aren’t giving up anything. Sometimes an 80-year-old tennis player is just as difficult to deal with as a college basketball player. They have the same
