Ep 12. Sports Medicine

Dr. House is back in action in season 1 episode 12 titled "Sports Medicine." The episode begins with Dr. House being asked to consult on the case of a college pitcher named Hank Wiggen who is experiencing severe shoulder pain. The diagnosis seems simple enough, but as usual, Dr. House isn't satisfied with the initial assessment and begins digging deeper into the patient's medical history.

Dr. House's investigation leads him to believe that Hank Wiggen may be using steroids which could be the cause of his shoulder pain. In order to get to the bottom of the issue, Dr. House enlists the help of his team and begins conducting some additional tests on the patient.

The team starts with an MRI that confirms the shoulder pain is caused by a condition called a SLAP tear, which is a tear in the labrum that is common in pitchers. However, Dr. House continues to suspect the use of steroids and orders blood tests to confirm this hypothesis.

As the team works on the case, Dr. House becomes convinced that there is more to the patient's shoulder pain than just the SLAP tear and steroids. He argues that there is a driving psychological factor, namely the pressure of performing at a high level, that is exacerbating the physical problems that Hanks is experiencing. Dr. House describes Hanks as "feeling like his future depends on each and every pitch he throws. That level of pressure, over time, would cause anyone's shoulder to give out."

Dr. House and his team work around the clock to get to the root of the issue, but the pressure of trying to save a rising star's baseball career while also trying to diagnose his condition takes a toll on the team members. Each of them approaches the case differently, with some members of the team looking to the patient's personal life, while others focus on the medical issues.

As the team continues to work on the case, Dr. House becomes convinced that Hanks is hiding something important, but he's not able to get any hard evidence. Thankfully, a breakthrough in the case occurs when Dr. House finds a prescription in Hanks's locker for a medication that could be masking the symptoms that they are trying to diagnose.

From there, Dr. House confronts Hanks and asks him point blank about steroid use. Hanks denies it at first but then comes clean, admitting that he did use steroids in the past but stopped before his shoulder injury occurred. He also reveals that he has been continuing to take a medication that Dr. House believes is masking the true cause of his shoulder pain.

Dr. House and his team are able to figure out the real cause of Hanks's shoulder pain, a rare bacteria that causes an infection in the bone. With this knowledge, they are able to treat Hanks and his condition improves dramatically. As Hanks prepares to return to the baseball field, Dr. House delivers a moving speech about the importance of pressure and the sacrifices that athletes make to achieve greatness.

Overall, "Sports Medicine" is an intense and dramatic episode that shows the intricacies of diagnosing complex medical conditions. The episode highlights the importance of investigating all possible causes of a medical issue and demonstrates the different approaches that members of the medical team may take when trying to diagnose a patient.