The Pat and Aaron Injury Report 10/27/22 with Dr. Nofsinger

Aaron: Pat and Aaron Show 95.3 WDAE and AM 620, Like we did during the midday, we loved it so much. We brought it to the mornings because we’ve been hearing about from you, the listeners, how much you enjoy it. If you’ve been to the Florida Orthopaedic Institute in partnership with Tampa General Hospital and gotten some help, they’re recovering from an injury nothing but the best from what we hear about with our friends over there, and that’s why–

Pat: We’ve heard that from so many listeners.

Aaron: Yes. That’s why we have the Pat and Aaron Show Injury Report presented by Florida Orthopaedic Institute in partnership with Tampa General Hospital, and joining us as our first doctor on the New Morning show, Six to Nine Pat Aaron Show.

Pat: For the first time.

Aaron: Is Dr. Charles Nofsinger. Good morning, Dr. Nofsinger. Thanks for joining us today.

Dr. Nofsinger: Good morning. How are you?

Aaron: Doing great, better than some of these players dealing with injuries like Jet’s rookie sensation, Bryce Hall. The Jets have been having a really good season, and that Rookie has been a big part of it with his play on the ground. He’s going to miss the remainder of the season with a torn ACL. Now, doctor, for a guy that young, a rookie, what’s it like as far as the recovery at that age? Does it make it any easier? Of course, that position you got to use your legs.

Dr. Nofsinger: Yes, so running back a skilled position with an ACL tear, it’s a challenge. Bryce is obviously a stud and one of the keys to recovery is your quadricep muscle, that big muscle in the front of your leg. Obviously, he’s got great quads and he’s got a good team with him there to help them recover in terms of how fast they recover the fastest that it’s humanly possible to come back is six months, and eight months is probably what we’re looking at.

Pat: When you’re talking about that ACL it’s the type of thing that years ago, and I know I’m not telling you anything you don’t know, but it used to be such a game changer for guys. It would end their careers, it would really hamper their careers. We’re at a point now where, like you were just talking about, guys come back much quicker from that injury, and a lot of times, even though it still takes a year or so sometimes for guys to get back to where they were, they come back just as good.

Are we at a point now where that’s just an expectation that an ACL isn’t going to end your career, isn’t going to really hamper you, but that within a year or two you are going to be back to normal, which again, wasn’t always the case.

Dr. Nofsinger: No, I totally agree with you. I think we, if the right situation, so let’s say, I don’t know, obviously the details of the MRI, which is what you’d get if you had toy your ACL on grease, but if he does not have cartilage damage, the chance that it gets back is extremely high. We have new technologies that we’re using these days to both protect the ACL while you’re coming back and also when you recover, we have this new thing that it’s like a tourniquet, but it helps the muscle come back faster. That’s, those two things are making a big difference too.

Aaron: DK Metcalf, speaking of a different leg injury, he suffered a patellar tendon injury, He will not require surgery. When you get get an injury like that, how do you determine whether or not surgery is needed and what the extent of that injury is?

Dr. Nofsinger: Yes, that’s a great question. The patellar tendon, that thing between your kneecap and that bone below at the tibia, that tendon is injured in people that jump and push off a lot. The way we figure it out is first obviously we examine them, and see what it looks like. Then the next thing would be an MRI. The MRI will show us how torn it is. Sometimes it’s partially torn and sometimes it’s completely torn in a partial tear, many times you can get back without surgery.

Pat: Dr. Charles Nofsinger joining us right now from the Florida Orthopaedic Institute Doc, I know this is your first time with us. We didn’t include this question in the prep, but we always want to make sure we ask the most important things during these interviews. We saw a report and there were some quotes from Russell Wilson, that he’s only allowing himself to poop twice a week now, and it’s part of his diet.

Part of what he said was having the extra waste from not pooping after Thursday, because he says he only poops on Tuesdays and Thursday. He says having the extra waste inside him helps protect him against the impact from when he takes hits on Sunday, if you’re full of crap, will it help you when you get take a big hit?

Dr. Nofsinger: [laughs]

Aaron: Or is he just full of crap?

Pat: [laughs] Right?

Dr. Nofsinger: Being full of crap may help you when you’re chatting with your buddies, but it’s not going to help you on the football field.

Aaron: [laughs] I don’t know where he gets these things from.

Pat: It’s real weird.

Aaron: It is very strange.

Dr. Nofsinger: Yes, I don’t know. It’s one of those bizarre theories, but no, it’s not going to help you.

Aaron: Yes. We were also talking about another curve ball actually, by the way you knocked that one out of the park.

Pat: [chuckles]

Aaron: Carlton Davis of the Buccaneers, he’s dealing with a hip injury and from his position have a guy who’s defending receivers and has to make those type of movements with his hips, how recovery and what’s that hip injury like? Like any hip injury and recovering from that?

Dr. Nofsinger: Yes, so hip injuries in the NFL, a lot of times they’re these muscles on the inside of your leg to help you pull your legs together called the adductors. Those things can be a real pain in the tail, literally, and it has a lot to do with the athletic trainer and how they get the guy back and has a lot to do honestly with the player’s mentality. You got to play with pain and be just ready to be out there putting it down with pain. That’s what those injuries are about. Then in the off-season, if you had to, you could go after it with a procedure.

Pat: If you speak to aging people with hip issues, they will tell you that a lot of them will tell you that, like they don’t get better and they’re always lingering and they’re always around. Is this the type of thing, even though obviously it’s not an aging issue, we’re talking about a young player and a great athlete, but is this the type of thing that will also linger and be difficult to get rid of over the course of the season or like you said, is this the kind of thing where you just got to wait till the off-season to really get it right?

Dr. Nofsinger: Yes during the season it’s going to hurt, period. That’s the way these things are. In the off-season, many times you can get it back to normal. Sometimes there’s, I’m not sure if you guys have heard of this thing called sports hernia where, you actually rip the tendon off the bone and then that takes a surgery, but the recovery it’s pretty remarkable. He’s going to have it in the season and like you said in the off-season, should get over it.

Aaron: What does the sports hernia feel like, because Doc–

Pat: Oh boy, here we go.

Aaron: Just hear me out Doc.

Pat: Here we go.

Aaron: I was rounding second base last night during my softball game and I just felt a little bit in the left side, little area, and I was like, “I think I’ve completely torn it.” Would I not be able to move?

Dr. Nofsinger: Nah, sports hernia, what it is, is those muscles in front of your abdomen that rectus, so if you got like a six pack right? Then the muscles–

Aaron: I don’t

Pat: [laughs]

Dr. Nofsinger: -thing that post. Yes. If you got that hold on one second–

Aaron: Are you checking your abs Doc?

Dr. Nofsinger: Yes, I know, but those two things pull at the same time it can rip the tendon off the bone. A sports hernia is kind of a unique pain that travels down into your testicles and it’s brutal. Yes, unless you have that kind of pain, it’s probably not a sports hernia.

Aaron: Number two, the boys–

Pat: You good now, Aaron?

Aaron: Yes, I feel good now and Dr. Charles Nofsinger, I got to say we could tell right away. Pat and I gave each other a look. This is the first time you’ve been on the show. We knew right from the first sentence that you are fantastic. You’ll certainly be on the show again. We really enjoyed you today Dr. Charles Nofsinger.

Dr. Nofsinger: I appreciate it. That’s awesome.

Aaron: Thank you so much. Once again, the Pat and Aaron Show Injury Report presented by Tampa General Hospital in partnership with Florida Orthopaedic Institute, they provide you with access to one of the top orthopedic programs in the nation. Schedule an appointment today at floridaortho.com. One of the things I really love about them, Pat, is sometimes you get doctors that are stale. We have had so many doctors on from there that are just normal. Like, I would feel comfortable if I’m dealing with an injury where I have to go get surgery potentially, and that’s nerve-wracking to have people there that can calm you down, can joke around a little bit. I love everyone over there.

Pat: Bedside manner is very important and you can tell, like you said by the doctors that we have on and they know what they’re doing.