A sports pre-participation medical examination should be mandatory for all recreational athletes on a regular basis, as well as for any professional or non-professional athlete with high demands at the beginning of each season of activity. The fact of carrying out such a study beforehand would help to avoid injuries during exercise.
Sports medical check-up tests according to the level of the athlete
The sports medical examination should include different tests, which will become progressively more complete depending on the level and degree of demand of the athlete, as well as whether the athlete is professional or not.
1) Basic medical examination. This type of examination should include:
– Very careful personal and family anamnesis.
– Cardiovascular examination
– Respiratory examination
– Musculoskeletal examination
– Joint examination including, at least, upper and lower limb and spine.
– Mandatory basal electrocardiogram
2) Medical examination for athletes with high physical demands without the need to be professionals. In this second level the medical examination should necessarily include:
– Cardiological screening performed during normal physical activity with methods such as the Nuubo system cardiological screening.
– Biomechanical exploration of gait
– Kineanthropometric examination accompanied by a nutritional assessment.
3) Medical examination for highly demanding athletes. At this level, a more extensive muscular and skeletal exploration should be carried out by a physician expert in Sports Medicine, which would include radiological explorations such as musculoskeletal ultrasound and a muscular screening system such as tensomiography. This technique will evaluate, in a localized manner, each muscle group and the differences of contralateral limbs and the same leg.
All these tests should be performed with the aim of avoiding any type of incidence or injury to the athlete during physical activity.