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Young athletes risk injury through
too much of the same sport
A report from the US details the risks
young athletes take by participating in
high school sports.
While spinal injuries are down two per
cent from 10 years ago and catastrophic
injuries are rare, what most concerns
athletic trainers and doctors are the
injuries that come from overuse and
over-exposure.
Children are particularly prone to hazards
such as joint and muscle strains and if
certain guidelines are not observed,
playing sports can create undue stress
and pain.
“As they do more and more, they’re
getting injuries we usually see in adults,”
said Doctor Hussain Elkousy a physician
in Houston, Texas.
Dr. Elkousy says he sees young athletes
everyday who have suffered overuse
injuries. He attributes much of it to the
Texas climate. In colder climates, young
people don’t play their sport year round.
Whereas in warmer climates, such as
Houston’s, people play throughout the
year.
For boys, year round baseball puts strain
on their elbows and shoulders, say
experts. They say that for girls, the year
round routine exposes their knees more
than anything else.
Research from Germany suggests,
parents, trainers and teachers should
be aware that the sporting strengths
and weaknesses of children are linked to
phases in their physical development.
Ulrich Fegeler of the Cologne-
based Federation of Child and Youth
Paediatricians (BVKJ) explains: “During
puberty, boys gain more muscle mass
but physical resilience is actually reduced
since their bones grow faster than the
muscle tissue.”
Since their muscular systems are under-
developed, weight-training with heavy
loads or a high number of repetition is
Injuries by sport
According to Safe Kids USA, more than 3.5 million children aged 14 and
under receive medical treatment for sports injuries each year, and more than
775,000 children ages five to 14 are treated in hospital emergency rooms
for sports-related injuries. This accounts for 40 per
cent of the sports-related injuries cared for in the
emergency rooms in the US.
The following statistics were released by the Safe
Kids Campaign for American children aged 5 to 14
injured in 2002:
•
Fifteen per cent of
basketball
players, 28 per
cent of
football
players, 22 per cent of
soccer
players, 25 per cent of
baseball
players and
12 per cent of
softball
players have been
injured while playing their respective sports.
•
More than 207,400 children were treated in hospital emergency
rooms for
basketball
related injuries.
•
Nearly 187,800 children were treated in hospital emergency rooms
for
football
related injuries.
•
Nearly 76,200 children were treated in hospital emergency rooms for
soccer
related injuries.
•
Baseball
has the highest fatality rate among all sports for children.
Each year, 3 to 4 children die from injuries sustained while playing
baseball. Nearly 116,900 children aged 5 to 14 were treated in
hospital emergency rooms for baseball - or softball - related injuries.
•
Nearly 21,200 children were treated in hospital emergency rooms for
gymnastics
related injuries.
•
Almost 14,000 children were treated in hospital emergency rooms for
ice skating
related injuries.
not suitable. Fegeler recommends sports
which enhance stamina and motor
functions.
From their early years, children should
be encouraged to improve coordination
by running, jumping and through
participation in ball sports and swimming,
but a child or teenager who plays between
10 and 20 hours of tennis a week may
already be overdoing it.
Young gymnasts
risking damage
to bodies
Young gymnasts striving for perfect scores
in gymnastics are risking injuries or arthritis
because of the stress placed on their bones,
a US report suggests.
A study of X-rays and bone scans of athletes
in the US aged 12-16 showed they were
suffering damage to their joints that could
cause painful problems in later life.
In the report presented at the annual
meeting of the Radiological Society of North
America, researchers noted that the gymnasts
studied showed a “broad constellation of recent
injuries” to their wrists and knuckles and evidence
of early necrosis, or “death”, of bones.
Jerry Dwek, who led the study at the University of
California, San Diego, said that young athletes put
enormous stress on their joints, “possibly ruining
them for the future”.
Previous studies have suggested that the rate
of injury in gymnastics is almost as severe as
that in contact sports. For every 10,000 children
doing gymnastics each year, 52 will need hospital
treatment compared with 75 young rugby players.