Midstate Medical Moment: Avoiding Sports Injuries

Kurt Kessler, PT, DPT, SCS, ATC, athletic trainer, UPMC Orthopaedic Care

As a parent or guardian, it can be intimidating to know how to keep a young athlete healthy and active. A lot of kids are now playing the same sport year-round, including multiple sports teams in the same season.

The best thing you can do to keep your athlete healthy is to provide them with resources to understand their body. Your school’s athletic trainer has extensive training in injury prevention, management and safe return to sports. If you don’t have access to an athletic trainer, such as with a club team, finding a trusted medical provider with sport specialization is another great tool (such as a sports physical therapist or orthopedic physician).

Q: What are some common sports injuries and can they be prevented?

Lower body injuries, such as shin splints, ankle sprains, and tendon overload, are among the most common things we see in sports. Sometimes these injuries are purely accidental and can’t be avoided. But other times, through strength training and proper load management, injury risk can be minimized.

Tendon injuries typically develop within the first few weeks of a season. If your body hasn’t been adapted to your sport, your tendons will be the first to let you know with aches and pains from increased workload. For this reason, I always encourage athletes to stay active through strength training and prepare their bodies for their season before it starts.

Doing too much of something too fast or too soon is a recipe for injury. Work with your coaches, athletic trainers or other sports medicine professionals to come up with a plan to work up your activity level.

Q: Is stretching important, or can I skip it?

Stretching is important, particularly for young athletes. However, many people think the reason their muscles are tight or in pain is because they haven’t stretched enough, and that’s not often the case. Sometimes muscles feel this way because they are strained by your activity level or the way you move.

While stretching is good, it’s also important to strengthen your muscles so they are ready to handle the activities you want to do. Dynamic stretching can get the body loose and ready for activity, but it’s not the best tool for pain management.

Q: What can parents do to encourage healthy habits in young athletes?

Getting kids involved with meal planning and preparation helps them understand what goes into their body and how it helps prepare them for and sustain them during activity. This helps them develop valuable nutrition habits for themselves.

Strength training is another useful habit for healthy young athletes and can be started as early as middle school. Working with a professional to develop age-appropriate strength training routines can help prepare their body for the demands of the sport or activity they are involved with. It will also help young athletes develop coordination so that they are moving in ways that support athletics.

Q: When should I seek medical attention for my child’s sport injury?

Sports injuries can be tricky to address without the right training. It’s important to talk with your school’s athletic trainer or a sports medicine provider about any injuries your athlete experiences.

If your soreness noticeably improves with warm-ups, light movement, or if the pain severity subsides within 24-48 hours, the pain can usually be managed at home. However, if pain gets worse with movement or activity, that can be a sign that an injury needs to be addressed by a medical professional.

One final tip for preventing injury is to allow the body to rest and recover. Nowadays, young athletes play multiple sports at a time or play the same sport with multiple teams at once.

A general rule of thumb is that the weekly hours of sport shouldn’t exceed the athlete’s age. So, a child who is 12 shouldn’t be spending more than 12 hours a week doing intense exercise (practice, games, workouts, etc.). Once a child gets to high school age and beyond, we recommend between 16 and 20 hours a week of activity. Scheduling one to two recovery days during the week can go a long way in preventing overuse injuries.

Through the Midstate Medical Moment, UPMC wants to raise awareness about the health conditions affecting people living in the communities we serve. For more information about UPMC services in central Pennsylvania, visit UPMC.com/centralpa.