Ortho & Sports Medicine
Ortho & Sports Medicine in Dubai
Ortho and sports medicine covers the non-surgical assessment and treatment of joint, tendon and soft-tissue conditions — from osteoarthritis and long-standing tendon pain to sports injuries. At Shookra, Dr. Sharmila Tulpule leads your orthopaedic assessment. With over three decades of experience and a practice spanning Dubai and Mumbai, she brings surgical and non-surgical perspectives to the conversation.
Injections, including ultrasound-guided ones, are performed in-clinic once a specialist has assessed you and agreed a plan. Which options are appropriate — if any — varies from person to person, and is decided case by case rather than offered from a list.
- 6
- conditions covered
- 4
- treatment options
- 1:1
- specialist-led
- DHA
- licensed
- DHA-licensed
- Palm Jumeirah, Dubai
- Injections performed in-clinic
How it works
Find out what it actually is, first.
Most joint and tendon pain has been self-diagnosed long before it reaches a clinic, and often incorrectly — the same shoulder ache can come from the cuff, the joint or the neck. The plan only makes sense once the source is established, which is why nothing here is offered before an assessment.
- 01
Assess
A specialist takes the history, examines the area and requests imaging only where it would change the plan.
- 02
Explain
You are told what the specialist thinks is going on, and which options are reasonable to consider for it.
- 03
Decide together
Where an option is not appropriate, or where a surgical opinion is the right next step, we say so plainly.
By sport
You probably came here because of something you play.
Most people do not arrive naming a diagnosis. They arrive naming a sport and pointing at a joint. So start there — find what you play, and see where it tends to show up.
Padel
Dubai’s fastest-growing sport, and a demanding one: short, sharp rallies, a lot of wrist and shoulder rotation, and hard stops on a small court.
Where it usually shows up
Running
Repetitive load through the same tissues, and the trouble usually follows a change — more distance, a new surface, a different shoe.
Where it usually shows up
Football
Cutting, twisting and contact, on knees and hips that take the load unevenly.
Where it usually shows up
Tennis
Repeated overhead serving and single-sided load, which the shoulder and elbow absorb together.
Where it usually shows up
Cycling
High volume in one fixed position, so small fit problems compound over long distances.
Where it usually shows up
Gym & strength
Load that rises faster than tendon adapts to it — often a few weeks after the programme changed.
Where it usually shows up
Golf, swimming, watersports and CrossFit bring us the same joints by different routes. Whatever you play, the assessment is the same.
The longevity angle
Measure first, so you are not guessing about your own body.
The rest of this practice is built on measuring before intervening, and that applies here. Where it is useful, an assessment can sit alongside baseline testing — so a plan is built on what your body is actually doing rather than on how old you are.
We are not going to tell you this keeps you playing forever. Nobody can. What it does is replace guesswork with something a clinician can act on.
Treatments
Start from what hurts, or from what you have been reading about.
Two ways in: start from what hurts, or from the option you have been reading about. Both lead to the same consultation.
Conditions we treat
Start here if you know where it hurts.
Knee OsteoarthritisAche, stiffness and difficulty with stairs, building over months or years.Knee
Rotator Cuff & Shoulder PainPain reaching overhead, weakness in the arm, and disturbed sleep.Shoulder
Tennis ElbowOuter elbow pain with gripping and lifting. Covers golfer's elbow too.Elbow
Plantar FasciitisSharp heel pain with the first steps of the morning.Heel & foot
Achilles TendinopathyPain and stiffness at the back of the ankle, worse after loading.Achilles & ankle
Hip OsteoarthritisGroin pain with walking, stiffness, and a reducing range of movement.Hip
Treatments
Start here if you are researching an option. None of it is offered before an assessment.
- Ultrasound-Guided InjectionsJoint and soft-tissue injections placed while the clinician watches a live scan.Performed in-clinic
- PRP for Joints & TendonsAn injection prepared from a concentrate of your own blood.Autologous
- Exosome Therapy for JointsA regenerative-category injectable, considered case by case.Regenerative category
- Stem Cell Therapy for JointsConsidered only after assessment confirms suitability.Assessed case by case
Also assessed
These are assessed at the same consultation. Several are covered in depth inside a related condition page rather than on their own — golfer’s elbow sits with tennis elbow, and meniscal and cartilage findings with knee osteoarthritis.
- Golfer's elbow
- Patellar tendinopathy (jumper's knee)
- Meniscal degeneration
- MCL / LCL ligament injuries
- Shoulder arthritis
- Mild-to-moderate cartilage damage
- Chronic joint pain
- Sports-related MSK injuries
Field notes
Why joint and tendon problems behave the way they do.
Why is it taking so long? Why did the scan not explain it? Why did rest not fix it? Most of the answers are in how these tissues are built. None of this is about what a treatment does.
It has no blood supply at all.
Measured in months, not weeks.
The neck refers pain here too.
A scan is not a diagnosis.
Muscle adapts faster than tendon.
It is rebuilt your whole life.
The frame
We describe what these therapies are. Not what they promise.
Regenerative therapies — PRP, exosomes, stem cell approaches — are an active area of research in orthopaedics, and the evidence behind them varies considerably by therapy, by condition and by how they are prepared. That is an honest description of where things stand, not a reason to avoid the conversation.
So we do not tell you what these therapies will do for you. We tell you what they are, what the procedure involves, and what a specialist thinks is reasonable to consider for your presentation after examining it. Where the honest answer is that something is not appropriate, or that a surgical opinion is the right next step, that is what you will hear.
The clinicians
Physician-led, every protocol.
Dr. Sharmila Tulpule
Specialist Orthopaedic Surgeon · DHA-licensed
- Joint conditions
- Tendon conditions
- Sports injuries
- Guided injections
Dr. Sharmila Tulpule is an orthopaedic surgeon and American Board Certified Regenerative Medicine Specialist with over three decades of experience in musculoskeletal care. She is the Founder and Director of Orthobiologix Biotech Pvt. Ltd. and Orthobiologix Clinic, established to offer an unbiased orthopaedic diagnosis and a comprehensive discussion of surgical and non-surgical treatment options. Her clinical interests include arthroscopic surgery, sports injuries, ultrasound-guided orthobiologic interventions and regenerative medicine.
She divides her practice between Dubai and Mumbai, India. Her current affiliations include Mubadala Health and Medcare Hospital in Dubai, and Orthobiologix Clinic in Mumbai. Appointments requested through Shookra are coordinated by the Shookra team.
She completed her MBBS and MS (Orthopaedics) at Government Medical College, Nagpur University, where she was University Topper in MS Orthopaedics and a Gold Medalist in General Surgery. After postgraduate training with orthopaedic and arthroscopic surgeons in India, she served as a lecturer, Head of Department, trauma surgeon and consultant. She also undertook advanced arthroscopy training in France before continuing her career in Dubai.
Dr. Tulpule is a Diplomate and Fellow of the American Board of Regenerative Medicine (DABRM, FABRM). As the India Affiliate of ABRM, she leads physician education and training programmes in India. She also serves on the Board of the American Society of Regenerative Medicine (ASRM), Dubai.
She serves on the Orthobiologics Task Force of SICOT and the Advisory Board of the World Institute of Regenerative Medicine. She is Founder and Chairman of ReGen, an international conference on regenerative orthopaedics and orthobiologics in India, and Founder and Trustee of the Advanced Regenerative Medicine Foundation.
An invited international faculty member, she has spoken at TOBI in the USA, SICOT in Spain and other regenerative medicine conferences. She has authored peer-reviewed research, contributed chapters to international textbooks on orthobiologics and received the Gary Malanga Award for Best Educator in Regenerative Medicine. Her work brings together patient care, research, physician education and international collaboration.
- Qualification
- MBBS and MS (Orthopaedics), Nagpur University
- Postgraduate
- MCh (Orthopaedics), University of Seychelles
- Regenerative medicine
- Diplomate and Fellow, American Board of Regenerative Medicine
- Previously
- Head of Orthopaedics, Zulekha Hospital, Dubai, 2005–2008
- In Dubai since
- 2005
- Memberships
- ISAKOS · Indian Arthroscopy Society · International Cartilage Society
Licensed & Regulated
DHA-licensed. MOHAP-approved.
Every treatment is delivered at Shookra, a DHA-licensed medical facility in Dubai. Every physician and clinician on our team is DHA-licensed and works to clinical protocol. Our health communications are independently reviewed and approved by the UAE Ministry of Health & Prevention (MOHAP).
Shookra Polyclinic · DHA Facility Permit #3449309 · MOHAP Advertisement Licence T0UOE5NK-020526
Questions
Good to know.
Can I discuss both surgical and non-surgical options with Dr. Sharmila?
What should I bring to my appointment?
What happens after treatment?
Do I need a referral?
Are the injections performed at Shookra?
Will regenerative treatment mean I avoid surgery?
How do I know if I am suitable for PRP or a regenerative option?
Are you DHA-licensed?
How much does treatment cost?
Start with an assessment, not a treatment.
Message our team on WhatsApp and we’ll arrange a specialist consultation in Palm Jumeirah — we’ll talk through what is going on, what the options are, and what a consultation involves, pricing included.