Sports medicine is the field of medicine that treats sports-related injuries and many other issues regarding those involved in sports. A sports medicine physician works with athletes to prevent injury and illness, and to improve health and fitness. This specialist promotes the prevention of injury, and is knowledgeable in cardiology, orthopedics, exercise physiology, nutrition, psychology, emergency medicine, and other fields.

Physicians in this specialty treat patients suffering from numerous diseases and illnesses, but some of the most common are Spinal Stenosis, Spinal Injury, Spinal Infection, Scoliosis, Tendonitis, Spondylolisthesis, Spinal Discectomy, arthritis, Carpal tunnel syndrome, Bursitis of the Hip, Spinal Deformity, Spinal Cord Tumors, Herniated Disc, Arthritis of the Shoulder, Tendinitis of the Wrist, Concussion, Frozen Shoulder, Lateral Epicondylitis (Tennis Elbow), Bunions, and Torn ACL.

Once properly diagnosed, practitioners can perform numerous procedures on patients including cartilage transplant, Back / Spine Surgery , Hand surgery, Knee replacement, Hip Replacement, Disc Disease / Surgery, limb lengthening, Invasive Disc Surgery, Hip Surgery, shoulder surgery, Kyphosis Surgery, knee surgery, Joint Surgery, and Total Shoulder Replacement.

To diagnose patients with possible illnesses and diseases, specialists will often perform one of many tests including Arthroscopy, x-ray, Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI), musculoskeletal examination, physicial examination, and Cardiac Examination.

Doctor density varies by specialty and location. Maryland has 113 practicing sports medicine doctors. Broken out by city, sports medicine doctor density in Aberdeen is 1, in Andrews Afb is 2, in Annapolis is 15, in Baltimore is 42, in Bel Air is 6, in Bethesda is 5, in Bowie is 7, in Chevy Chase is 3, in Clarksville is 1, in College Park is 6, in Columbia is 3, in Crofton is 2, in Cumberland is 1, in Eldersburg is 4, in Elkton is 2, in Ellicott City is 1, in Fort George G Meade is 1, in Fort Washington is 1, in Frederick is 6, in Gaithersburg is 5, in Germantown is 2, in Glen Burnie is 4, in Greenbelt is 1, in Gwynn Oak is 8, in Hagerstown is 4, in Hyattsville is 1, in Kensington is 3, in Lutherville is 3, in Lutherville Timonium is 9, in Millersville is 7, in Mount Airy is 3, in North Potomac is 1, in Oakland is 1, in Olney is 3, in Owings Mills is 9, in Oxon Hill is 3, in Riverdale is 1, in Rockville is 7, in Silver Spring is 6, in Takoma Park is 1, in Timonium is 7, in Towson is 2, and in Westminster is 7.

Maryland was one of the thirteen original colonies, and achieved statehood in 1788. Maryland’s population is 5,600,388; Annapolis is its capital and home to the U.S. Naval Academy. Baltimore is the largest city, and is home to world-acclaimed Johns-Hopkins University and Hospital. There are myriad activities available for residents or visitors, including arts and theater, sports, museums, hiking, biking and walking trails, Famous people from Maryland include musician Frank Zappa, baseball great Babe Ruth, and Francis Scott Key, who wrote the “The Star-Spangled Banner.”

According to 2005 Census estimates, Maryland has a population of 5,600,388. Of this population, 1,360,481 are under the age of 18 and 641,040 are at or above the age of 65.