Differece Between a Sports Therapist and a Physical Therapist?

Question by Kayyy Bee :): differece between a sports therapist and a physical therapist?
what is the main difference between a sports therapist and a physical therapist??
i thought i wanted to be a physical therapist but now i am starting to wonder if sports therapy is the better way to go.

Best answer:

Answer by avena a
Both professions are are licensed professionals with a backround in musculoskeletal assessment and rehabilitation of musculoskeletal injuries. However, the scope of physical therapy is broader. Physical therapy also includes a significant amount of training in the rehabilitation of neurological disorders such as MS, spinal cord injury, etc. The education also contains a significant emphasis in differential diagnosis, being able to differentiate between different neruomusculoskeletal problems (and assign a PT diagnosis to it) as well as differentiating between a neuromusculoskeletal conditions and a medical condition (for which referral to an MD may be necessary).

The patient population is also more limited with athletic trainers. Their target patient is an athlete, while a physical therapist can work with athletes as well as the general population.

This is not to say that ATCs are lesser qualified…as they complete a signficant amount of field work and education. They just have a more focused scope of practice and target patient population. PT education, on the other hand, is more extensive (the current requirements for a new grad are either MS or DPT level). Yet, it is due to the broader patient population.

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Answer by mistify
Are you in the US or UK? In the US, there is really no such thing as a sports therapist…a “sport therapist” is simply a physical therapist who has completed extra continuing education beyond their entry level masters or doctorate level to obtain a board specialty in sports medicine rehab.

A sports physical therapist is also different than an athletic trainer who, again, does not carry the evaluative skills to treat a wide variety of physical conditions as a PT and who are restricted to only treating athletes.

In the UK, a sports therapist is a skilled practictioner with a backround in first aid, massage and some basic principles of rehabilitation. However, their practice is limited to the treatment of athletes. As a PT, you can work with athletes as well as anyone else with a function limitation or injury.

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