Ultrasonographic possibilities and findings in most common sports injuries

It is known that sports, especially competitive sports, can cause different kinds of injuries, which can be fractures and/or dislocations of joints, but more often soft tissue lesions. As a rule it is difficult to establish clinically the character and/or size of the sports lesion, but nowadays we have methods to examine soft tissues. The most modern method is Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI), but the cheaper one is ultrasound examination, which is some years old but has been developed continually. Recent studies have shown that soft tissue sports injuries can be diagnosed quite easily. The lesions can be localized and their size determined, parametres especially useful if surgery is required. We conclude from our studies that ultrasonic soft tissue examination improves diagnostic accuracy of sports injuries. Recovery is faster thanks to correct diagnosis and treatment. The healing process can also be followed up by ultrasonography.