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What are the new findings? The National Institute for Sports Medicine in Hungary is a specific state-funded healthcare provider with complex sports medical and sport-related services available for athletes at every age and sports activity level.
The National Sports Medical Service in Hungary is directly funded by the government and is free for all amateur competitive athletes, assuring the financial independence of the network and thus leaving no room for conflict of interest while evaluating athletes' eligibility.
All sport-related healthcare tasks are managed within the same system and within institutional frames by professionals at Sports Medicine, which guarantees institutional expertise, competence and responsibility.
Introduction
Undertaking regular sports activities is important for health. However, non-appropriate types or levels of sport activities can lead to severe health deterioration. Several elite athletes have died due to sudden cardiac death or have suffered sports injuries that led to long-term injuries. It is well documented that professional athletes and lower level or recreational athletes face similar problems. Other major concerns are the increasing number and severity of sports injuries among young active people and these conditions may cause relative or absolute contraindication/withdrawal from sports.
Although the role of prevention is growing, only very few nations have a well set-up sports medical system to prevent and treat sport-related conditions. With its 65 years' history, the National Institute for Sports Medicine (NISM) in Hungary is the trustee of the health of athletes at every age and activity level. It works in close collaboration with the ministries responsible for healthcare and sports, the Hungarian Olympic Committee, the Hungarian Non-Olympic Committee, the Hungarian Paralympic Committee and all the national teams and sport federations.
The aim of this paper is to introduce the details of our complex screening and therapeutic system specially designed for athletes of every age and sports activity level.
The organisational structure and functions of the NISM in Hungary
The NISM was founded in 1952. The main aims of NISM were to provide medical coverage for national teams; to deliver medical care, mandatory preparticipation screening/clearanceand periodic health evaluation (PHE) for all Hungarian athletes; to offer training in Sports Medicine for physicians; to conduct clinical and exercise physiological research in order to expand the knowledge of treating and preventing injuries; to study the...