Ashley Deutsch has always dreamed of competing on a basketball team. The athlete from West Lafayette, Indiana, sees the upside of playing team sports. "It helps build confidence and stamina," she says.
Last year, Ashley, 12, won a spot on her school's basketball team. She practiced for two hours every day after school. But the hard work took its toll on her body. When her ankles began to swell, Ashley started to visit her school's athletic trainer for physical therapy. For three weeks, she iced and wrapped her injured ankles.
Ashley is just one of 30 million U.S. kids who play competitive sports. As the number of young athletes grows, so does the number of injuries. In 2003, about 3.5 million American kids younger than 15 were treated for sports-related injuries.
Some of those young athletes suffered typical sports bang-ups. But doctors are treating more kids for overuse injuries, which require lengthy rehabilitation and care. Overuse injuries include cracked kneecaps, sore shoulders, torn tendons, back pain and damaged growth plates, the fast-growing areas in kids' bones.
Too Much is Too Much
Experts call these ailments overuse injuries because they occur when
frequent and repetitive motion places stress on a part of the body.
Changes in the way kids participate in sports have helped contribute to
the surge in such injuries.
In today's win-at-all-costs sports culture, many young athletes never rest. They specialize in one sport, competing year-round. "A baseball player will spend the fall playing in an indoor league," says Chuck Kimmel of the National Athletic Trainers' Association (NATA). "In the winter, he's in the batting cage, and in the spring and summer, it's baseball, baseball, baseball!"
Single-sport athletes often practice the same skills over and over. The nonstop effort leaves no recovery time for the body and puts athletes who are still growing at greater risk of injury. "A single area of the body gets used exclusively, and other areas are not strengthened," said Angela Smith, an orthopedic surgeon.
Kids who play more than one sport get a more balanced workout, but they can overdo it too. Ashley Papesh, 15, of Dublin, Ohio, is on the basketball, volleyball and track teams. She has suffered stress fractures, a strained calf muscle and torn ankle ligaments. "My body got worn down," she says. Wyatt Visca, 11, of Memphis, Tennessee, competed in back-to-back soccer and basketball seasons. He ended up on crutches from a stress fracture.
An Ounce of Prevention
Last week, NATA and the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (AAOS)
launched a campaign to teach young athletes, parents and coaches how to
prevent overuse injuries. Some of the experts' tips: Warm up, cool down
and stretch, and take the time to rest. Kids should engage in activities
that develop the whole body, including recreational play--goofing around
and having fun.
"Young athletes would be better off playing on only one team," says AAOS's James Beaty, "and spending the rest of the time being a kid." What a good game plan!
Where Does It Hurt?
Young athletes are at risk for two types of injuries: acute and overuse.
Acute injuries are caused by a single event, such as a fall, a twist or a collision. Overuse injuries occur when frequent and repetitive motion places stress on a body part.
Here's a look at some hot spots for overuse injuries and the activities that can cause them.
Shoulders
Swimming, pitching and tennis can injure the rotator cuff, a group of
muscles that help move the shoulder in an arc.
Elbow
Repetitive throwing can put too much pressure on the muscles, tendons
and cartilage near the elbow. A painful condition known as Little League
elbow afflicts kids in many sports, not just baseball.
Back
Excessive flexing and stretching in such sports as ice-skating and
gymnastics can affect the spine, causing back pain.
Legs and feet
Running and dancing can cause a stress fracture, a hairline break in a
bone. Most stress fractures occur in the foot or the bones of the lower
leg.
Knees and heels
Too much jumping and running in such sports as track, basketball and
soccer can cause torn tendons in the legs. Tendons connect muscles to
bones.