Young Athletes Should Play More Than One Sport

Young athletes who play just one sport and train intensively have an increased risk of stress fractures and other severe overuse injuries, says a new clinical study, the largest of its kind.

Young athletes who spend more hours per week than their age playing one sport are 70 percent more likely to experience overuse injuries than other athletes. Take for example a 12 year old gymnast who spends 15 hours a week training. They would be a prime example of someone with an increased risk for stress fractures.
Loyola University Medical Center sports medicine physician Dr. Neeru Jayanthi presented the findings on April 19th at the American Medical Society for Sports Medicine (AMSSM) meeting in San Diego. The study is called "Risks of Specialized Training and Growth in Young Athletes: A Prospective Clinical Cohort Study."
Jayanthi said at the meeting, "We should be cautious about intense specialization in one sport before and during adolescence. Among the recommendations we can make, based on our findings, is that young athletes should not spend more hours per week in organized sports than their ages."
Jayanthi and colleagues at Loyola and Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago enrolled 1,206 athletes ages 8 to 18 between 2010 and 2013 who came in for sports physicals and treatment for injuries. The research follows each athlete for the three years of the study.
Overall, there were 859 total injuries, with 564 of them overuse injuries. Of the 564 overuse injuries, 139 were serious injuries, such as stress fractures in the back or limbs, elbow ligament injuries, and injuries to cartilage and underlying bone. Injuries like these can sideline an athlete for up for six months, depending on the severity.
The study confirmed the preliminary findings, which stated that playing one sport increases the risk for overall injury. Other findings from the study include:

• Young athletes who spent twice as much playing organized sports as they did in unorganized free play were more likely to be injured. 
• Those who had serious injuries spent more than 21 hours per week in physical activity, including 13 hours of organized sports. Athletes who were not injured spent 17.6 hours per week in total physical activity, including just 9.4 hours of organized play. 

Jayanthi and colleagues have the following recommendations for young athletes:

• Do not spend more hours a week in your sport than your age. If you are 11, do not spend more than 11 hours per week in that sport. 
• Do not spend more than twice the hours playing organized sports as you do in the gym and in unorganized play.
• Do not specialize in one sport until you are in later adolescence. 
• Do not play sports competitively year round. Take a break of at least one to three months per year from sports. 
• Have one day a week when you do not play your sport. 

Jayanthi and colleagues are planning a follow-up study to see if their recommendations reduce the risk of overuse injuries. The study is called TRACK: Training, Risk Assessment and Counseling in Kids.
"We will test our hypothesis that many of these serious injuries are potentially preventable," Jayanthi said.
Reference: Science Daily.
If you are the parent of a young athlete and they have a foot problem, call our Newington, Kensington, or Middletown office to make an appointment.
Craig M. Kaufman, DPM
Connecticut Foot Care Centers
Sports Medicine Podiatrist in CT
Podiatrist in Newington
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Women and Children More Likely To Have Sports Injuries

By reading this blog, you've probably noticed that sports injuries in general are far too common. But what may not be readily apparent however is that women and children are more likely to have sports injuries than men.
Athletes of all skill levels and experience are likely to get sports injuries. It doesn't matter if you're in the NFL or just a weekend warrior looking to lose some weight. Injuries happen anywhere on the body- feet, legs, arms, shoulders, hips, etc.
So why are women more prone to get sports injuries than men? Dr. Bridget Quinn, director of the sports clinic at Boston's Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center says that differences in women's anatomy- wider hips, and different thigh bone and foot structure- make women more susceptible. Women are likely to get repetitive motion injuries, like stress injuries, shoulder and hip problems, and ankle sprains, as their joints are more flexible than men's.
For children, the difference is often age. You can have one child who is 6 foot 2 and 225 pounds and one child who is 5 foot 6 and 130 pounds, and both be 14 years old. Dr. Thompson McGuire, an orthopedist who specializes in sports medicine at Down East Orthopedics in Bangor, ME, says he's amazed by the physical disparity between his son and his classmates.
"My son is probably 90 pounds, and he has classmates who are close to 200 pounds, full-grown men who are already shaving. He's playing soccer against these guys and I'm glad it's not football," said McGuire. He adds that he sees a lot of injuries from basketball, football, and soccer, but admits that these are popular sports. "I don't see a lot of cricket injuries," he joked.
Research done by the National Center for Sports Safety found:

1. More than 3.5 million children ages 14 and younger receive medical treatment for sport injuries each year.
2. Children suffer 21 percent of all traumatic brain injuries in the United States due to sports activities.
3. Repetitive motion injuries account for nearly half of all sports injuries in middle and high school students due to immature bones, insufficient rest between activities, and poor conditioning.
4. Children between the ages of 5 and 14 account for 40 percent of all sports related injuries in the emergency room. These injuries are due to: football (28%), basketball (25%), and soccer (22%).
5. Basketball injuries far surpass football, baseball, and soccer injuries.
6. Between 1982 and 2002, 88 children died from basketball injuries, opposed to 22 football deaths, and 14 cheerleading deaths.

Advances in protective equipment are helping cut down on injuries, but not concussions in football players. "The helmets are getting better, but they have no impact on concussions. What happens with a concussion is the skull stops, but the brain keeps going and it gets bruised when it hits the skull. These new helmets are great for preventing fractures, but not concussions," says McGuire.
However, don't let these numbers scare you. The benefits of getting out and exercising far outweigh any risks that happen.
If you are are suffering from a sports related foot injury, call our Newington, Kensington, or Middletown office to make an appointment.
Craig M. Kaufman, DPM
Connecticut Foot Care Centers
Sports Podiatrist in CT
Podiatrist in Newington, Kensington, and Middletown, CT
Visit our website, friend and like our page on Facebook, and follow my tweets on Twitter.

Year-Round Sports May Be Bad For Children

CCS - Soccer Tournament - 060 (Photo credit: D.Clow - Maryland)

Nationally known sports fundamentalist Dave Ferguson says that putting kids through rigorous activity before they hit puberty is threatening their health. And some local doctors are starting to see indications of that in children who play the same sport all year long.
Despite growing concerns about kids being more vulnerable to sports injuries at a young age when playing sports, local dad John Wellman isn't going to let that affect the way he raises his children. "As a young adult and as an adult, I have pushed myself very hard and sometimes have gone past my limit. But that's part of finding who you are as a person. And while I probably will be keeping a close eye on my children in those situations I wouldn't hold them back," Wellman said.
While children need to exercise, the type of injury I see in kids are as a result of only playing one sport all year long. But as long as you know your limits, you don't need to worry. When you listen to your body and don't try to play through an injury or pain because it leads to further problems down the road. When drills or activities aren't changed, overuse injuries begin to occur.
If your child plays a sport and has been experiencing pain, call our Newington, Kensington, or Middletown office to make an appointment.
Craig M. Kaufman, DPM
Connecticut Foot Care Centers
Sports Medicine Podiatrist in CT
Podiatrist in Newington
Visit our website, friend and like our page on Facebook, and follow our tweets on Twitter.