Q: I am 28 years old. I am a boxer and have participated in many inter-provincial contests. Last year in the semi-final bout of a tournament, the opponent hit few punches on my right kidney area. To take the blow was very painful, resulting in withdrawal from the tournament. I live in Tando Adam, where I could not find any healthcare facility to take care of sports injuries. Please suggest me a good sports injuries specialist in Karachi who can cure my injury. —Aziz Ahmed Chandio.

A: Boxing is one of the most physical stressful and exertion inducing sport activity in the world. In this sport there can be serious tissue injuries and damage of body parts which can lead to medical ailments and chronic problems.

In your case most likely you may have injured your muscles, tendons or internal organs like urology system or the spine. I will advise you to please get your self-assessed by an urologist and a spinal surgeon to assess your problems. Once they give a clearance there can be further assessment of your soft tissue injury.

Dr. Muhammad Kazim Rahim

MD, FCPS (Ortho) AO Fellow (Germany), Sports medicine Fellow (IRI) (France), Hip and Knee Arthroplasty Fellowship (PAS, Pak) Assistant Professor  Department of Orthopaedic Surgery Liaquat National Hospital & Medical College

Q: I am an athlete, and participate in 500 meters race. I have an eight years old son, and I want him to be an athlete par excellence. The problem is that my son has flat feet and knock knees. Is there any way to remove these defects in early childhood? —Imtisal A. Khan

A: Your child has two issues, one is flat feet and second is knock knees. To me both are separate issues and need to be dealt separately. First of all it is difficult to answer your question regarding your child’s problem. It is very important to examine your child first, as he needs proper clinical assessment. Regarding flat foot if it is non pathological (that is no under lying pathology) usually no need for any treatment. He can participate in all types of sports with medial arch support. Although theoretically these feet are more prone to injury but no study is available to prove it.

Regarding knock knees, at age of eight years it needs further evaluation with work up and treatment according to the cause of this knee deformity.

Most common cause in our country is Vitamin D deficiency and after proper assessment and definite management he will be able to participate in sports at any level.

Dr. M. Asif Peracha 

FCPS (Ortho) Paediatric Orthopaedic Surgeon 

Assistant Professor | Department of Orthopaedic Surgery 

Liaquat National Hospital & Medical College

Q: I am 27 years old and I play tennis regularly. Lately I have developed an elbow pain (tennis elbow) which I am sure many tennis players suffer from. Please help me to get rid of this pain. —Sheraz Tanoli

A: Tennis elbow is a clinical condition in which the tendons on outer side of elbow get inflamed due to over use. It is usually managed by non-surgical methods which include pain killers, rest and regular sessions of physiotherapy. If pain persists even after all these measures then injections are used for short period of time. It is necessary to take a break from sporting activities. It is advisable to visit an orthopedic surgeon to get yourself evaluated so that proper management can be started depending upon the severity of your symptoms.

Dr. Muhammad Sufyan

FCPS (Ortho) AO Fellow (Germany), Sports Medicine Fellowship (Singapore)

Assistant Professor | Department of Orthopaedic Surgery

Liaquat National Hospital & Medical College

Q: I am 52 years old. I used to be a sprinter in my early days. Now that I gave up all the athletic activities, I still go for an 8-km walk every day. Lately my left knee developed a severe pain, which starts after one or two kilometer, and then it remains there for 8 or 10 hours. Please suggest what to do? —Shahnawaz Ahmed.

A: It’s good that you have been an athlete. Athletic activity from young age with good diet make muscle and bone and joints strong. However, athletes do sustain multiple injuries during active sports. The effect of these same injuries accumulate and can cause various issues in later life.

You are still doing a good amount of walking daily. Few common things which can go wrong are:

• Hamstring strain

• Iliotibial band syndrome (ITBS)

• Patello femoral pain Syndrome (PFPS)

For the time being I would advise to take rest for 2-3 days. Do hamstring stretching. You can also do icing if you feel any sort of swelling around the knee. Also anti-inflammatory medicine can help you if there is no contraindication.

Exact cause of your pain can be sorted out if you visit me in my clinic for proper knee examination and X-rays if required.

Dr. Nasir Ahmed

Assistant Professor and Consultant

Orthopedic Surgeon

Department of Orthopedic Surgery

Liaquat National Hospital and Medical College