NBA Hall of Famer Dominique Wilkins and Wellstar orthopedic surgeon Dr. Joseph Burns talk about staying active, overcoming injuries, and living pain-free.
Dominique Wilkins: Coming from someone who’s had a bunch of injuries, what’s the first thing you should do when you start feeling joint pain?
Dr. Joseph Burns: The acronym R-I-C-E, which is rest, ice, compression, and elevation, is a good place to start. Paying attention to other symptoms that go along with your injury is important. Did you lose range of motion? Is there swelling? Is it improving with time?
Dominique: So when should you go to a doctor? For me, all the years of competing have helped me learn my body. It comes down to whether I have pain more than soreness.
Dr. Burns: Most of us, though, don’t understand our bodies the way you do. In general, physicians will tell people that sudden, severe pain, or pain after an injury should be evaluated. Another sign is how you’re sleeping. If pain is waking you up at night, it’s time to look into it.
Dominique: My doctor told me, “You see me now or you will definitely see me later.” When he said that, I got in that practice of listening when my body was telling me something.
Dr. Burns: Yes. The body’s response to injuries is different. Acute inflammation comes on quickly and it can be treated fast and effectively. Chronic inflammation, once the problem has been there a long time, is a different type of response with different cells and different processes going on. It isn’t as easy to fix. Oftentimes it is a long-term approach that may involve rebalancing muscle strengths, physical therapy, or lifestyle changes.
Dominique: As you get older, you deal with a lot of little things. For example, my rotator cuffs; I’m in pain a lot of the time. I had an X-ray to see what was going on and now they take my blood, mix it, and shoot in my shoulder.
Dr. Burns: It’s interesting that you mention that treatment. It’s called platelet-rich plasma or PRP, and it harnesses the body’s own healing ability, which is quite amazing. It involves removing a little bit of blood, extracting certain cells—in this case the platelet cells— concentrating them, and then injecting them back into an injured area of the body. It’s a great example of the technological advances that can help people avoid surgery.
Dominique: You want to make sure that you stay ahead of things. What do you suggest in terms of maintenance?
Dr. Burns: It’s really a combination of factors. Stretching, low impact strength training, proper nutrition, rest, recovery, and keeping your mind active and focused. This approach can help significantly reduce not only your risk for injury, but your blood pressure, and stress and anxiety levels. It’s an ongoing, lifelong process of maintaining your health. There are no shortcuts.
Dominique: It’s a journey, right? Even at the ripe age of 64, I’m trying to stay flexible. I do a lot of physical therapy, too, just for maintenance. That keeps me ahead of the game. And I walk two and a half miles every day, because for me, movement is life.
Dr. Burns: And the mental resiliency involved is as equally important as the physical work.
Dominique: It’s also about building a support team around you—doctors, family members. That’s your dream team to help you navigate and get through a tough time. Because it’s not going to happen overnight.
Dr. Burns: The way that you approach your injuries and continue to approach your health maintenance is exactly the way most people should. We can’t do it alone. From a physician’s standpoint, it is extremely valuable to know all about your patient. That’s why a health system like Wellstar can be so helpful, where our patients often see several physicians within the system. All the different specialists are on the same team and can communicate with each other.
Dominique: So, what’s your best advice for people who want to keep playing sports but are worried about wearing out their joints?
Dr. Burns: Staying active as you age is one of the best things you can do for your health, but it’s important to be proactive about joint protection. By incorporating joint-friendly, low impact exercises, listening to your body, maintaining proper nutrition, and prioritizing recovery, you can continue to enjoy sports and exercise while minimizing the risk of injury and preserving your joint health.
Dominique: If you strengthen the muscles, especially in your back and your knees, it takes a lot of stress off your limbs. After I tore my Achilles tendon, I started doing that and realized how much better my body felt. And I always let my body recover after a tough game.
Dr. Burns: Yes, the body needs the opportunity to recover. There’s a normal soreness after activities, but if you don’t give your body the opportunity to fully recover, it can actually get used to the idea that it’s always in pain, always fighting.
Dominique: The change in recovery has been pretty dramatic since I was a player. I had a 17-year career, but if we had some of that technology around, I could have played four or five more years.
