What Is a Sports Injury Assessment?
A sports injury assessment is a clinical and biomechanical examination of an injury that happened during sport or training, with a plan for getting back to it. It looks past the sore spot to the pattern that produced it, so the injury is treated and its cause is corrected at the same time.
Our podiatrists have a special interest in sports podiatry and find gait analysis a particularly useful tool for assessing running biomechanics. At the Manly Foot Clinic we have a special interest in sports podiatry. They can tailor make an orthotic to a particular sport and regularly fit inserts into sports shoes. Our sports-focused podiatrists believe that custom-made orthotics can help improve performance, alleviate pain and prevent injury.
Who It Helps
Some common foot and lower limb injuries include: shin splints (lower leg pain), plantar fasciitis (heel pain), Achilles tendonitis, ankle sprain, knee pain and stress fractures.
Runners and triathletes
Shin splints, plantar fasciitis, Achilles tendonitis and stress fractures are the running injuries the clinic lists, and gait analysis on the clinic’s own equipment is the tool for finding the fault behind them.
Surfers and surf club members
The Northern Beaches has a surf life saving club on nearly every beach, from Manly to Dee Why and beyond, with Nippers through to masters training on wet sand year round. Ankle sprains and forefoot pain from boards and hard sand are assessed the same way as any other sports injury.
Netball, football and rugby
Manly Warringah netball plays out of John Fisher Park in Curl Curl, Manly United and Dee Why FC play football at Cromer Park and Dee Why, and Dee Why Lions run rugby from James Morgan Reserve. Ankle sprains and knee pain from these codes are a regular part of the clinic’s week, in children and adults.
What to Expect
Every assessment follows the same four stages, from history to return to sport.
Assessment first
A history of the injury and your training load, a hands-on examination, and a gait analysis where the injury is one that running mechanics produce. Imaging is arranged where it is needed to distinguish, for example, a stress fracture from a soft tissue injury.
The treatment
Once our podiatrists have assessed your walking or running pattern, they will then plan corrective treatment to iron out the biomechanical faults. Treatment may include: custom-made orthotics, footwear advice, strengthening and stretching exercises, and technique and training advice.
A short course
The plan is staged across consultations as the injury settles and training resumes. Injection or shockwave therapy is available in the clinic where a plan calls for it. Return-to-sport milestones are set by your podiatrist for your injury; no generic timeline is stated here.
Review and progress
Structured review, outcome measurement and a report back to your referring practitioner, coach or physiotherapist where you want one.
Why Consider a Sports Injury Assessment at Manly Foot Clinic
- A special interest in sports podiatry. Mohamed Elbana’s bio describes sports-related podiatry and the management of sports-related injuries.
- Gait analysis, orthotic prescription from a 3D scan, and injection therapy in the one clinic.
- A surgical podiatrist consults on site, so an injury that turns out to need a surgical opinion does not mean a second waiting list.
- Serving the Northern Beaches since 1989.
Sports Injury Assessment FAQs
You don’t need a doctor’s referral to see one of our podiatrists at the Manly Foot Clinic for gait analysis, simply contact us to arrange an appointment. The same applies to a sports injury assessment.
Some common foot and lower limb injuries include: shin splints (lower leg pain), plantar fasciitis (heel pain), Achilles tendonitis, ankle sprain, knee pain and stress fractures.
At the Manly Foot Clinic we have a special interest in sports podiatry. They can tailor make an orthotic to a particular sport and regularly fit inserts into sports shoes. Our sports-focused podiatrists believe that custom-made orthotics can help improve performance, alleviate pain and prevent injury.
That depends on the injury, and your podiatrist sets return-to-sport milestones for your case at the assessment. Manly Foot Clinic does not publish generic recovery timelines for sports injuries, so this page does not state one.
Yes. Our podiatrists see children of all ages, from toddlers who are learning to walk through to teenagers in competitive sport. Children’s appointments usually include a look at how they walk and run, muscle strength and flexibility testing, and footwear advice. Where it’s needed, treatment may include an exercise program or, in some cases, splinting or orthoses.
Serving Manly and the Northern Beaches.
Manly Foot Clinic is at Shop 3/3 Corrie Rd, North Manly, NSW 2100, a few minutes from the surf clubs, ovals and courts of Manly, Dee Why, Brookvale, Freshwater and Balgowlah. Open Monday to Friday 8:30am to 5:30pm and Saturday 8:00am to 2:00pm.