Advanced Workstations Guiding US Open Physicians

The high-level athletes at the US Open for the first time have available onsite advanced image-viewing workstations that can guide physicians in making a rapid diagnosis. The medical team is using the PACS workstation (Picture Archiving and Communication System) made by GE Healthcare. For the fourth year in a row, Mount Sinai Hospital is the official medical services provider for the tournament.

According to the August 29, 2016 news release, “…If players are injured and need to get imaging (such as MRIs) at The Mount Sinai Hospital or other nearby locations, the athlete’s physicians at the stadium can now have real-time access to those scans, and examine them with high-resolution monitors. They can also compare those images to the athlete’s previously uploaded scans from other health centers in their home countries. Radiologists will be able to rapidly diagnose injuries just minutes after a scan has been completed. Then trainers and doctors can immediately decide on the player’s treatment options, and if they can remain competitive during the tournament.

“This is one of the few major tennis events in the world that has full-time radiologists on site to provide these specific services, ” said Carlos Benitez, M.D., Director of Musculoskeletal Imaging at Mount Sinai West and Mount Sinai St. Luke’s. “Mount Sinai is leading the way in bringing technologies and medical expertise from the hospital into the field, and giving these elite athletes the absolute best care.”

“Our physicians look forward to refining unique skills required to care for professional athletes at the US Open, and using this knowledge to better treat our year-round patients who participate in athletics, ” said James Gladstone, M.D., Co-Chief of the Sports Medicine Service at The Mount Sinai Hospital, Associate Professor of Orthopaedic Surgery at the Icahn School of Medicine, medical advisor to the US Davis Cup tennis team, and consultant to the US Open.

Alexis Chiang Colvin, M.D., is associate professor of Sports Medicine in the Leni and Peter W. May Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, and team physician for the US Fed Cup Team. Dr. Colvin, who serves as the Chief Medical Officer of the United States Tennis Association (USTA), told OTW, “By improving our diagnostic capabilities, we can help formulate the optimal treatment plan for the player’s injury.”