Entry 235-1
Huntsville Hospital and The Orthopaedic Center Provide Medical Care to Strike King Pros
Editor’s Note: Dewayne Manning is the director of sports medicine at Huntsville Hospital in Huntsville, Alabama. Huntsville Hospital and The Orthopaedic Center (TOC), also located in Huntsville, have teamed up to offer medical advice and treatment to the Strike King Pro Staff members. We’ve asked Manning, a certified athletic trainer, about the injuries fishermen commonly suffer, and what treatment options are available.
Part 1: Common Injuries of Anglers and Their Causes
Question: What problems do fishermen have? They’re not going to get knocked in the head or broken in half like a wide receiver on a football team who’s nailed by a defensive back. They’re not going to get kicked in the head by a 2,000-pound bull or get their lungs punctured like a bull rider. These guys go fishing.
Manning: Fishermen have a lot of overuse issues with the muscles and the joints in their backs, legs, feet and necks. They are on the water fishing, making casts, retrieving lures, running boats in choppy water and standing on unstable platforms during a week of practice. Then for 3 days after practice, they’re on the water competing at a high level. We see professional anglers with a lot of wrist, elbow, shoulder, back and plantar fasciitis (a problem that occurs in the foot from working a trolling motor constantly).
Professional fishermen’s shoulders begin to wear out because they’re constantly casting, cranking crankbaits and jerking back to set their hooks, all of which can cause elbow injuries and wrist injuries. Many of the fishermen I see complain about their wrists aching and then becoming weak after 3 or 4 hours of constant casting.
We’ve noticed that every sport has its most-common injuries due to the tasks that the athletes are required to perform to compete in that sport. 
Soccer and football players experience a lot of knee and head injuries, and basketball players have numbers of ankle and knee injuries. For anglers, it’s their casting arms that suffer, often developing some type of problem from their shoulders to their fingers because of overuse. Their backs and feet will often develop problems from standing or operating a trolling motor from dawn until dusk. Some manufacturers have started making recessed trolling-motor pedals, and this feature really has helped to reduce the stress on the fishermen’s feet, ankles and backs.
Question: What’s the most-common injury that professional fishermen get?
Manning: The No. 1 injury is fishermen’s elbow. As the elbow works back and forth, the joint becomes overused, and the muscle gets fatigued – creating a lot of inflammation. Fisherman’s elbow is similar to tennis elbow. Casting, reeling and setting the hook puts a lot of strain on the elbow. The first thing we do to treat this is have the fisherman wear a strap, which relieves the pain while he’s doing any type of activity.
To prevent this type of injury and to speed healing if it does occur, we give fishermen a series of strengthening and stretching exercises to help alleviate the stress, strengthen the joint and eliminate the injury. 
We’re actually sending the Strike King Pro Staff a list of exercises they can do every day before they go fishing. Just like a runner warms up before a race, fishermen should do certain types of warm-up exercises before they practice or compete. The warm-up exercises can actually prevent many injuries. We’re also recommending that the fishermen ice down their elbows after their competition or practice. If needed, we prescribe anti-inflammatory medication.
Question: What do fishermen do if they’re competing or practicing, and they have an illness or an injury?
Manning: The Orthopaedic Center has a 24-hour hotline that they can call and explain their problems. Whatever it is, joint or muscle pain, a sinus infection or any other health issue, they can call our service at the Huntsville Hospital, and we’ll consult with them over the phone and tell them how to treat their illnesses. If anyone needs a prescription, TOC will call in his prescription to the closest pharmacy to help them get through a tournament or a practice. That way they don’t have to drop out of a tournament because they’re sick or injured. Too, quick treatment can sometimes prevent an injury or illness from becoming worse, as well as provide relief.
Just like a football player who has to be ready to play on game day, whether he’s sick or not, these fishermen have to be ready to compete, regardless of their conditions. If a fisherman has a sore elbow, TOC will overnight a strap to him to get him some relief and enable him to finish his tournament. The Strike King Pros, in conjunction with the Huntsville Hospital, have medical assistance on call 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, so that they can compete at the peak of their physical conditions.
You can contact Dewayne Manning at TOC at Huntsville Hospital at 256-539-2728 or email him at dewaynem@hhsys.org. For more information about The Orthopaedic Center, call 256-265-5000 or go to The Orthopaedic Center website.
