Vim & Vigor - Fall 2008 - North Denver - (Page 6)

ligament and damaged the cartilage. Then he told me he wasn’t 100 percent sure I’d be able to play hockey again. That was the worst.” sports support For referral to a sports medicine physician, call ASK-A-NURSE at 303-777-6877. Nine months later, he was back on the ice. a surgical solution “A patella dislocation is pretty common among sports injuries,” McNair says. “What was uncommon in Kevin’s case, and what made it a much more traumatic dislocation, is that a piece of articular cartilage—the cartilage that caps the end of the bone—was knocked off in the process.” McNair was able to correct the problem with ambulatory surgery at St. Anthony Central Hospital using a new procedure called microfracture (see sidebar). “We also reconstructed the medial patella-femoral ligament, which helps stabilize the kneecap,” he says. After six months of extensive physical therapy, Rigot returned to roller hockey. Nine months later, he was back on the ice. call déjà vu Fast-forward one year from Rigot’s ﬁrst knee trauma. Same ice arena. Same ﬁrst weekend of sports medicine matters “It’s a specialty unto itself,” says Patrick McNair, M.D., of Panorama Orthopedics & Spine Center and one of 5280 magazine’s “Top Docs” for 2008. “Sports medicine encompasses not just the injury and its management, but the Patrick McNair, M.D. athlete’s needs, aspirations and awareness. Its focus is getting each individual back to the best shape and performance level they can reach. “A lot of general orthopedists can do the surgical side of such care, but a physician with fellowship training in Sports Medicine has a more complete understanding of the surgical aspects, the role of physical therapy, and of the athlete’s demands and desires,” McNair says. “The patients I see for sports medicine injuries range from junior high school to someone whose self-perception is that of an athlete. Here in Colorado, such performance really is not a matter of age or activity level or even competency,” McNair says. “It’s how people define their state of being. This is a patient population that wants more out of life.” the now-senior’s holiday break. But this time, it was his right leg that took the hit. “I was behind the net when someone bumped me,” he says. “It wasn’t like the ﬁrst time, when I was slammed to the boards, but somehow my leg twisted and my other kneecap got dislocated. The ref kept telling me I’d be okay, but I knew that wasn’t the case. “Really strange … déjà vu.” So, it was back to the Emergency Department and back to Panorama. Rigot laughs when he recalls McNair’s words during the repeat visit. “‘Great to see you again, Kevin,’ he said, ‘but not in this context.’” Where the left-knee trauma had required surgery, the right-knee injury was managed conservatively with physical therapy, alone. The care plan called for six weeks of semiweekly therapy sessions, which Rigot could receive at Parker Adventist Outpatient Therapy near his high school. At the sixweek mark, McNair advised Rigot to continue for six more, given his intention to return to hockey. By late spring 2008, he was ready, again, for competition. the colorado challenge From dislocated knees and shoulders to spine injuries and sprained ankles, the range of sports injuries seen by orthopedists in recreationally rich Colorado is extensive. Moreover, McNair conﬁrms, Panorama’s partnership with St. Anthony Central Hospital’s Level I trauma center and Flight For Life means many patients arrive with complex care needs. “Whether these individuals have been injured on the ski slopes or mountain biking or in some other type of accident, they come down here in the best of hands,” he says. “Without the care these medical teams provide on the way, a great number of patients would not do as well. Some certainly would not survive. “The care they receive before we see them to begin piecing things back together sets the stage for continued excellence.” 6 vim & vigor · fal l 2 008

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Vim & Vigor - Fall 2008 - North Denver Contents A Mission in Motion For Your Health Goal! Seeing Beyond Time Equals Muscle The Fiber Solution Prize Fighters On the Cover: Spreading the News I'm Glad I Had a... Tailor-Made Beyond the Bedside On Track Living the Good Life Little Kids, Big Decisions Zeroing In Right At Home Beating the Clock Community Connections Ask the Experts

Vim & Vigor - Fall 2008 - North Denver

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