Overuse Injuries and Youth Athletes
January 13, 2008
When a child begins to push themselves for greater success we as parents say this is a good thing,but when the pushing begins to hurt them we must look at the bigger picture for their health and well being.
Such is the plight of a growing number of athletes, both male and female, who train their young bodies past the point of diminishing returns and right into injuries.
The American Academy of Pediatrics estimates that more than 30 million children and teens participate in organized sports each year. Of those, about 3.5 million seek treatment for overuse injuries and chronic fatigue from overtraining. Sports Medicine specialists say they’ve seen a steady increase in the number of injured and over-trained athletes between ages 8 and 18 by as much as 25 percent in recent years.
Experts attribute that increase to more and more children specializing in only one sport and playing it year-round for school, select and traveling teams. That leaves no down time for rest and repair.
Steve Stahle, primary care sports medicine physician at U.S. Center for Sports Medicine in Kirkwood, Mo., said that in addition to the typical musculoskeletal injuries, kids are also susceptible to growth plate injuries. The growth plate is the area of growing tissue near the end of long bones in children and adolescents. The femur in the thigh and the humerus in the upper arm are two examples and each one has a growth plate at both ends of the bone. Those plates determine the future length and shape of the mature bone. “You can strengthen your muscles, but you can’t strengthen your growth plate,” Stahle said.
An overdeveloped muscle will pull on the slower growing, soft-tissue plates, increasing the risk of injury. “Some coaches and parents think they need to be training every day, when it’s often better for them to take a few days off,” Stahle said. “But it’s hard to convince them of that..”He often tells them they might have the best 12-year-old pitcher in the history of Missouri but that if he injures that growth plate, his arm will stay 12 years old, while everyone else’s is advancing. “This is a growth plate. This is how he’ll get bigger. And this is what we have to protect,” Stahle said.
Dr. Mark Halstead is a pediatric sports medicine specialist with St. Louis Children’s Hospital and Washington University. He attributes the increase in overuse injuries and overtraining, which is a condition of chronic fatigue, to the explosion in the number of select and travel teams as well as performance enhancement training.
“When many parents participated in high school sports 20 years ago, the sports environment was nothing like it is now, especially with girls, who often have an even more intense drive than boys. With one season practically running into the next. You are asking for trouble. As I have written before and most experts agree your child needs some rest physicaly and emotionally to be prepared and ready for the new season.
A byproduct of more injuries are more and more clinics poping up just for children. These clinics are helpful because they are familiar with the unique mind-set of athletes, who feel they must continue some sort of training to stay fit.
The consequences far out weigh the benefits.”Preventing and recognizing overuse injuries and overtraining –Overuse injuries range from stress fractures and broken bones to strained and torn ligaments, tendons and muscles. Overtraining is when athletes experience chronic fatigue and a noticeable decrease in performance. One can lead to the other. When an athlete is fatigued, his or her form and technique break down, which increases the risk of injury.
Teenage girls who overtrain can experience female athlete triad: Menstruation stops, which can affect bone density, which can lead to stress fractures. –Young athletes become susceptible to growth plate injuries when overdeveloped muscles start pulling on growth plates. This can cause permanent damage.
Occasional soreness is common. But pain that sticks around two or more weeks and makes kids limp or otherwise hurts their performance needs to be evaluated by a sports medicine specialist.
Experts say kids should not play or practice a single sport more than four or five days a week.
They should also take a full week or two off every three months to allow their bodies to rest and repair.
Sources: Dr. Mark Halstead, pediatric sports medicine specialist with St. Louis Children’s Hospital and Washington University, and Dr. Steve Stahle, primary care sports medicine physician at U.S. Center for Sports Med
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