Ultra sound in sports is a relatively recent innovation, and remarkably effective. It is likely to be used in many areas of sports, for example, in sports medicine, sports training and so on. It seems to be an effective way of detecting the defects in athletes’ muscles and bones. Ultrasound provides an easy way to know the details about the interior of bodies. The equipment for this procedure is not very expensive and it can be carried on hand-held devices, which are convenient for the users and the athletes themselves. And ultrasonography can be used to detect blood clots, tumors and other abnormalities in both children and adult patients.
The greatest advantage of ultrasonography over other methods is that it can help us know whether a certain part of our body has some problem or not. This method is also quite portable and easy to operate, which means that it can be used at any time and anywhere, saving time and money for patients greatly.
Ultrasound meets all of the necessary requirements of utility in the healthcare industry, and more specifically, in sports medicine.
Not only is it cost-effective for the user and physician, but its resourcefulness, portability, safety, and high-resolution imagery make it a superior medical tool in many contexts, sports medicine included.
While ultrasonography is still underutilized, many are becoming more and more aware of its specific benefits.
Several Benefits of Using a Sports Ultrasound:
- It’s non-invasive
- Provides real-time assessment data
- Readily available
- Equipment portability
- Safe in health-compromised patients
- Use is repeatable for monitoring
- Relatively cost-efficient
- Offers high-quality resolution imagery of examination
- Free from ionizing radiation
- Interactive
The advantages of a sports ultrasound far outweigh its few disadvantages.
It’s important to realize the safety that ultrasound provides versus ionizing radiation. Anytime that radiation can be avoided, it is much more healthy for the injured athlete.
Ultrasound operators should not only have a keen understanding of how to use it, but they should also be aware of its limitations. For example, while an ultrasound is effective for examining and diagnosing certain injuries and conditions, it doesn’t adequately assess deeper-rooted injuries, such as fractures of bones.
Disadvantages of Sports Ultrasound (US)
The disadvantages of ultrasound should be considered; however, these can be managed well in most sports medicine programs. The primary disadvantage of the ultrasound is its user-dependency.
These are some of the Disadvantages of Using a Sports Ultrasound [6]:
- Highly user-dependent
- Requires a lengthy training period for the operator
- Inability to examine deeper structures of the body
- May be ineffective in obese or overweight patients
Regardless of these few disadvantages, ultrasounds are an extremely beneficial tool for the healthcare system. With the ability to evaluate tendinopathies, rotator cuff pathology, and other soft-tissue conditions, ultrasound is an invaluable modality in sports medicine.
Sports ultrasound is cost-efficient for both the user and the patient, and it provides extremely useful information in an extremely high-quality format. More importantly, it’s safe, readily available, fast, and portable.
Luckily, sports ultrasound use is growing and will continue to be a helpful benefit to the field of sports medicine.
