IBFCSM CPSO study guide
IBFCSM CPSO · Work through your exam, one topic at a time.
The IBFCSM Certified Professional in Sports Medicine (CPSO) is a professional credential for practitioners who manage athlete health and performance across the continuum from training room to return to play. Candidates typically include athletic trainers, physiotherapists, exercise physiologists, strength and conditioning coaches, and physicians or physician extenders working in sport. The IBFCSM CPSO study guide has 8 sections and about 2,561 words.
01Exercise Physiology and Human Performance
This domain checks whether you can turn bioenergetics and cardiorespiratory physiology into safe, individualised training prescription for athletes and active patients - not just recite definitions. Energy systems sit on a continuum : phosphagen (ATP-PCr) dominates roughly 0–10 s, glycolysis roughly 10 s–2 min, oxidative phosphorylation thereafter.
335 words, about 2 min02Sports Injury Prevention and Conditioning
Prevention science and conditioning prescription: how load, neuromuscular control, strength and recovery interact to change injury risk in team and individual sports. Load management : the acute:chronic workload ratio compares the latest week with a rolling 4-week average.
337 words, about 2 min03Assessment, Diagnosis, and Clinical Evaluation
Structured history and physical examination, use of clinical decision rules, and the reasoning that converts findings into a working diagnosis and appropriate referral. Sequence : history (mechanism, onset, OPQRST, loading history, red flags), inspection, palpation, active and passive range of motion, resisted testing, then special tests.
329 words, about 2 min04Therapeutic Intervention and Rehabilitation
Exercise-based rehabilitation design, loading progression, modality selection and criteria-based return to sport rather than time-based clearance. PEACE & LOVE (2019) replaced RICE-style advice: Protect, Elevate, Avoid anti-inflammatories, Compress, Educate acutely; then Load, Optimism, Vascularisation, Exercise.
301 words, about 2 min05Emergency Care and Acute Injury Management
Recognition and first-line management of time-critical events on the field: cardiac arrest, exertional heat stroke, cervical spine injury, anaphylaxis, and acute musculoskeletal trauma. Primary survey ABCDE with simultaneous defibrillation: start CPR immediately, apply an AED as early as possible; survival falls roughly 7–10% per minute without defibrillation.
305 words, about 2 min06Sports Nutrition and Pharmacology
Fuel and fluid prescription for training and competition, supplement risk, and anti-doping rules including strict liability and therapeutic use exemptions. Carbohydrate : 3–5 g/kg/day for general training, 6–10 g/kg/day for endurance athletes, and up to 10–12 g/kg/day in heavy loading.
318 words, about 2 min07Sports Psychology and Athlete Well-Being
Psychological factors in performance and recovery: arousal regulation, mental skills, overtraining and burnout recognition, and appropriate mental-health referral. Arousal and performance : the inverted-U hypothesis and the individual zones of optimal functioning (IZOF) both argue that optimal arousal is individual, not uniformly high or low.
314 words, about 2 min08Professional Practice, Ethics, and Patient Safety
Scope of practice, consent, documentation, confidentiality, conflict-of-interest reasoning, and the systems that keep athletes and venues safe. Scope of practice : work within your training and licensure; refer promptly when a condition exceeds it.
322 words, about 2 min