Sports medicine represents a fundamental pillar for high-level athletes and in the Paralympic context, it takes on an even more crucial role.
Paralympic athletes have a variety of physical conditions and disabilities that can affect their participation in sport, such as amputations, spinal cord injuries, cerebral palsy and other conditions that require specific adaptations in training and medical management. Paralympic sports medicine must therefore be highly specialized to address these challenges.
From this perspective, the introduction of new paths and the organization of initiatives to support its patients has long been among the main objectives of the Strategic Management of the IRCCS “Bonino Pulejo” Neurolesi Center in Messina. After the swimming crossing of the Strait of Messina held last July, with the presence of eleven new Paralympic athletes, former patients, the Institute’s ambitious project takes shape, placing a table tennis table in the “Family Room” of the Functional Recovery and Rehabilitation Unit of the Casazza Hospital, the historic home of the Peloritano hospital. Athletes belonging to different disability categories can participate in the discipline. For this reason, thanks to the synergy with the Provincial Paralympic Committee led by Francesco Giorgio, an “open day” aimed at patients already hospitalized or being treated at the “Bonino Pulejo” will start from Thursday 16 October from 9am to 12pm. The scientific activities will be conducted by highly qualified personnel, involving a team of researchers from the Neurolesi Center (doctors, psychologists, physiotherapists, neurophysiologists) and sports technicians.
“Sport is an important factor in social promotion, health, well-being and social inclusion – declared Maurizio Lanza, Director General of the IRCCS. We aim to involve the population by raising awareness on the topic, but also and above all to involve the medical community to develop scientific-health paths of excellence to accompany people with disabilities in sporting activity”.
The agenda of the Strategic Management of the Institute was nourished: the day was in fact enriched by other events of considerable importance, such as the start of a new Paralympic Sailing project, held at the Command of the “Logistics Support” Unit of the Navy of Messina currently led by the Captain of Vascello Alessandro Giuseppe Lardizzone, the start of a prestigious partnership with “Obiettivo 3”, a project founded by Alex Zanardi which aims to do learn and spread the practice of sport among disabled people and an operational meeting to finalize the final details of the conference entitled “Sports medicine at the service of the Paralympic athlete” which will be held in Catania on November 28th, organized by the FMSI (Italian Sports Medical Federation) section of Catania, with the presence of the President Francesco Maccarione and the IRCCS “Bonino Pulejo”. Among the panel of speakers who will take part, Prof. Marco Bernardi, deputy director of the School of Specialization in Sports Medicine at the “Sapienza” University of Rome
