| Abbreviation | AMSSM |
|---|---|
| Formation | 1991 |
| Legal status | Non-profit |
| Purpose | Education, training, standards and advocacy of sports medicine physicians |
| Headquarters | Leawood |
Region served | United States |
Membership | Doctors (MDs) |
President | Tracy Ray, MD |
The American Medical Society for Sports Medicine (AMSSM) is a large sports medicine membership organization, representing over 3000 physicians in the United States, established in 1991. [1] AMSSM includes members who serve as team physicians at the youth level, NCAA, NFL, MLB, NBA, WNBA, MLS, and NHL, as well as with Olympic and Paralympic teams. [2]
Sports medicine is a subspecialty area of medicine in the USA. The AMSSM represents non-surgical sports medicine physicians (MDs) practicing primary care sports medicine. The primary specialty options for non-surgical sports medicine practice in the USA are multiple, including family practice, physiatry, pediatrics, internal medicine and emergency medicine.
Sport and exercise medicine physicians are able to prescribe pharmaceuticals, use diagnostic ultrasound and order other radiological imaging and blood tests, perform minor surgical procedures as well as advising on exercise prescription. Branches of particular interest include concussion in sport and sports cardiology.
The AMSSM is differentiated from other sports medicine organizations in the US as follows:
The AMSSM publishes multiple Position Statements including on concussion, [3] cardiac screening of athletes, [4] mental health, [5] cardiac consequences of COVID in sport, [6] ultrasound [7] and sexual violence in sport. [8]
It also shares and endorses consensus statements of/with other organizations. [9] [10]
The AMSSM was established in 1991, when sports medicine was officially recognized as a subspecialty branch of medicine in the USA. Past Presidents include Jonathan Drezner, Chad Asplund, Katherine Dec, Cindy Chang, Kimberley Harmon, Robert Dimeff, James Puffer, Doug McKeag and John Lombardo.
Internal medicine, also known as general internal medicine in Commonwealth nations, is a medical specialty for medical doctors focused on the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of internal diseases in adults. Medical practitioners of internal medicine are referred to as internists, or physicians in Commonwealth nations. Internists possess specialized skills in managing patients with undifferentiated or multi-system disease processes. They provide care to both hospitalized (inpatient) and ambulatory (outpatient) patients and often contribute significantly to teaching and research. Internists are qualified physicians who have undergone postgraduate training in internal medicine, and should not be confused with "interns”, a term commonly used for a medical doctor who has obtained a medical degree but does not yet have a license to practice medicine unsupervised.
Echocardiography, also known as cardiac ultrasound, is the use of ultrasound to examine the heart. It is a type of medical imaging, using standard ultrasound or Doppler ultrasound. The visual image formed using this technique is called an echocardiogram, a cardiac echo, or simply an echo.
A concussion, also known as a mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI), is a head injury that temporarily affects brain functioning. Symptoms may include loss of consciousness; memory loss; headaches; difficulty with thinking, concentration, or balance; nausea; blurred vision; dizziness; sleep disturbances, and mood changes. Any of these symptoms may begin immediately, or appear days after the injury. Concussion should be suspected if a person indirectly or directly hits their head and experiences any of the symptoms of concussion. Symptoms of a concussion may be delayed by 1–2 days after the accident. It is not unusual for symptoms to last 2 weeks in adults and 4 weeks in children. Fewer than 10% of sports-related concussions among children are associated with loss of consciousness.
Sports medicine is a branch of medicine that deals with physical fitness and the treatment and prevention of injuries related to sports and exercise. Although most sports teams have employed team physicians for many years, it is only since the late 20th century that sports medicine emerged as a distinct field of health care. In some countries, sports medicine is a recognized medical specialty. In the majority of countries where sports medicine is recognized and practiced, it is a physician (non-surgical) specialty, but in some, it can equally be a surgical or non-surgical medical specialty, and also a specialty field within primary care. In other contexts, the field of sports medicine encompasses the scope of both medical specialists as well as allied health practitioners who work in the field of sport, such as physiotherapists, athletic trainers, podiatrists and exercise physiologists.
Athletic heart syndrome (AHS) is a non-pathological condition commonly seen in sports medicine in which the human heart is enlarged, and the resting heart rate is lower than normal.
Mervyn John Cross was an Australian rugby league footballer and orthopaedic surgeon. He played in Australia's major competition the New South Wales Rugby League (NSWRL) but Cross, a doctor, was better known for his achievements in the field of sports medicine as an orthopaedic surgeon.
Second-impact syndrome (SIS) occurs when the brain swells rapidly, and catastrophically, after a person has a second concussion before symptoms from an earlier one have subsided. This second blow may occur minutes, days, or weeks after an initial concussion, and even the mildest grade of concussion can lead to second impact syndrome. The condition is often fatal, and almost everyone who is not killed is severely disabled. The cause of SIS is uncertain, but it is thought that the brain's arterioles lose their ability to regulate their diameter, and therefore lose control over cerebral blood flow, causing massive cerebral edema.
Orthopedic Sports Medicine is a subspecialty of orthopedic medicine and sports medicine. The word orthopaedic derives from "ortho" which is the Greek root for "straight" and "pais" which is the Greek root for child. During the early history of orthopaedic medicine, orthopaedists used braces, among other things, to make a child "straight."
Femoroacetabular impingement (FAI) is a condition involving one or more anatomical abnormalities of the hip joint, which is a ball and socket joint. It is a common cause of hip pain and discomfort in young and middle-aged adults. It occurs when the ball shaped femoral head contacts the acetabulum abnormally or does not permit a normal range of motion in the acetabular socket. Damage can occur to the articular cartilage, or labral cartilage, or both. The condition may be symptomatic or asymptomatic. It may cause osteoarthritis of the hip. Treatment options range from conservative management to surgery.
The British Journal of Sports Medicine is a twice-monthly peer-reviewed medical journal covering sports science and sports medicine including sport physiotherapy. It is published by the BMJ Group. It was established in 1964 and the editor-in-chief from 2008 to 2020 was Karim M. Khan. Jonathan Drezner has been editor-in-chief since January 1, 2021.
The Clinical Journal of Sport Medicine (CJSM) is a peer-reviewed medical journal in the sports medicine field. It is published by Lippincott Williams & Wilkins. It was established in 1990 by the Canadian Academy of Sport and Exercise Medicine with Gordon Matheson as the founding editor. It is also the official journal of the Australasian College of Sport and Exercise Physicians, the American Medical Society for Sports Medicine (AMSSM) and American Osteopathic Academy of Sports Medicine. It is the pre-eminent non-surgical sports medicine journal of North America. In North America, sports medicine is a subspecialty field of medicine with an even split between surgical and non-surgical subspecialties. The surgical branch of sports medicine is a subspecialty field of orthopedics, whereas the non-surgical branch draws from specialties including family practice, physiatry, pediatrics, internal medicine and emergency medicine. The journal editor-in-chief is Christopher Hughes. There are active associated CJSM Blog and Podcast sites which are edited by Deputy Editor James MacDonald.
Concussions, a type of mild traumatic brain injury, are a frequent concern for those playing sports, from children and teenagers to professional athletes. Repeated concussions are known to cause neurological disorders, particularly chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), which in professional athletes has led to premature retirement, erratic behavior and even suicide. A sports-related concussion is defined as a "complex pathophysiological process affecting the brain, induced by biomechanical forces". Because concussions cannot be seen on X-rays or CT scans, attempts to prevent concussions have been difficult.
James David Forbes Calder is a British orthopaedic surgeon specialising in sporting injuries. He has built a reputation for treating foot and ankle injuries in top international athletes - soccer players from the English Premier League and European clubs including Paris St Germain, AC Milan, Barcelona FC, Real Madrid, Olympique de Marseille FC in addition to rugby players from England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales, GB Olympic teams, England and Indian cricket teams and UK Athletics.
The Australasian College of Sport and Exercise Physicians (ACSEP) is a not-for-profit professional organisation responsible for training, educating, and representing over 350 doctors in Australia and New Zealand. These doctors practise medicine in the specialty of sport and exercise medicine (SEM). The ACSEP is the smallest of the 15 recognised specialist medical Colleges in Australia with approximately 260 Fellows and Registrars in 2020. Australia and New Zealand, along with the UK, have been cited as pioneer countries in the establishment of SEM as a stand-alone specialty.
Sports cardiology is an emerging subspecialty field of Cardiology. It may also be considered a subspecialty field of Sports medicine, or alternatively a hybrid subspecialty that spans cardiology and sports medicine. Emergency medicine is another medical specialty that has some overlap with Sports Cardiology. Sports cardiology is now considered to be a distinct subspecialty in Europe and the USA, with a core curriculum developed in both regions. In Europe it has traditionally been grouped under Preventive Cardiology, but the subspecialty of Sports Cardiology is now considered a distinct field. In the USA, it has developed from being a special interest area to a distinct subspecialty as well.
John Orchard FACSEP is an Australian sport and exercise medicine physician, notable for advocating for rule changes in sport to improve player safety. In 2020 he was awarded a Member of the Order of the Order of Australia for significant service to sports medicine, particularly cricket. He was a member of the Australian government advisory group for sport responding to COVID, representing professional sport as the Chief Medical Officer for Cricket Australia and was instrumental in cricket's response to COVID. During 2023, he worked as the General Medical Officer for Australia at the FIFA Women's World Cup.
Jonathan A. Drezner is an American sport and exercise medicine physician, currently editor in chief of the British Journal of Sports Medicine. In both clinical practice and research he has a strong interest in sports cardiology. He is a first author for the International Guidelines for Electrocardiography (ECG) Interpretation in athletes and was the 19th President of the American Medical Society for Sports Medicine (AMSSM) in 2012.
The Orchard Sports Injury and Illness Classification System (OSIICS), previously OSICS, is an injury classification system for sports injuries and illnesses. It was first created in 1993 and is free for sporting teams and competitions to use. It is one of the two major Sports Injury classification systems in use worldwide; the other is the Sports Medicine Diagnostic Coding System.
In sports medicine, a preparticipation physical evaluation (PPE) is a physical examination of an athlete. PPEs screen for a variety of conditions, including athletic heart syndrome and risk of sudden cardiac death. PPEs are required for athletic participation according to the laws of some jurisdictions and the rules of many sports governing bodies. PPE is known by a variety of other names, such as preparticipation evaluation, preparticipation physical examination, preparticipation screening, sports physical, sports physical exam, examination for participation in sport, and similar.
Exercise medicine is a branch of medicine that deals with physical fitness and the prevention and treatment of injuries and illness with exercise. In some countries, Sport and Exercise Medicine (SEM) is a recognized medical specialty. Exercise medicine is therefore an emerging physician (non-surgical) specialty, but there is also a belief that exercise is treatment of such fundamental benefit that it should be incorporated into all medical specialties. Allied health practitioners also can specialize in exercise such as exercise physiologists, physiotherapists, athletic trainers and podiatrists.
