American Medical Society for Sports Medicine
For Immediate Release Jan 23, 2015

AMSSM Position Statement on Interventional Ultrasound in Sports Medicine and New Curriculum Published

Leawood, KS -- AMSSM is pleased to announce the release of the AMSSM Position Statement on Interventional Ultrasound in Sports Medicine and the AMSSM Recommended Sports Ultrasound Curriculum for Sports Medicine Fellowships.

Ultrasound, also known as sonography, is an imaging method that uses high-frequency sound waves to produce real-time and dynamic images of the body. A physician can use ultrasound during a clinic visit to quickly evaluate a patient and make a diagnosis. The physician would be looking for a tendon tear, fluid in a joint or nerve entrapments, etc. The clinical use of ultrasound is relatively inexpensive and reduces the need for follow up visits after other tests such as an MRI.

Ultrasound is increasingly being used to assist Sports Medicine Physicians, Rheumatologists, Orthopedists, and Primary Care Physicians in performing evaluations and injections of different muscles, tendons, ligaments and joints. With the advancement of this technology, ultrasound machines have become smaller and more portable. This has allowed treating clinicians to be able to use real time, point of care ultrasound, to assist in the diagnosis and treatment of their patients.

The position statement critically reviews the literature and evaluates the accuracy, efficacy, and cost-effectiveness of ultrasound-guided injections in major, intermediate, and small joints, and soft tissues, all of which are commonly performed in sports medicine. New ultrasound-guided procedures and future trends are also briefly discussed. Based on the evidence, the official AMSSM position relevant to each subject is made. The recommended curriculum outlines competencies of Sports Ultrasound and to provide sports medicine fellowship directors and others interested in Sports Ultrasound education with a guide to create a SPORTS US curriculum.

“The use of ultrasound to diagnose injuries and guide interventions is changing the way we practice medicine,” states Dr. Jonathan Finnoff, the lead author of the position statement and sports ultrasound curriculum. “Diagnostic ultrasound allows the patient to get accurate and timely information from their physician regarding their injury. 
In addition, ultrasound-guided injections are more accurate than non-guided injections, hurt less, and appear to work better and reduce the need to have more medical care. So, ultimately, they save money.”

Dr. Finnoff also says that ultrasound allows physicians to find problems they couldn’t have found previously, and enables physicians to do new, advanced procedures that couldn’t have been done without ultrasound. According to Dr. Finnoff, “diagnostic and interventional ultrasound is revolutionizing medicine.”

The position statement and recommended curriculum can be viewed by visiting the AMSSM website,http://www.amssm.org/Publications.html.

Dr. Finnoff was also featured in a Clinical Journal of Sport Medicine (CJSM) podcast discussing the position statement and the curriculum. Click here to listen to the podcast.

To schedule an interview with Dr. Finnoff, contact 913.327.1415 ext.57.

About the AMSSM: AMSSM is a multi-disciplinary organization of 2,700 sports medicine physicians dedicated to education, research, advocacy and the care of athletes of all ages. The majority of AMSSM members are primary care physicians with fellowship training and added qualification in sports medicine who then combine their practice of sports medicine with their primary specialty. AMSSM includes members who specialize solely in non-surgical sports medicine and serve as team physicians at the youth level, NCAA, NFL, MLB, NBA, WNBA, MLS and NHL, as well as with Olympic teams. By nature of their training and experience, sports medicine physicians are ideally suited to provide comprehensive medical care for athletes, sports teams or active individuals who are simply looking to maintain a healthy lifestyle. www.amssm.org

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