Some 35 million youth aged 5-18 play sports each year in addition to the many American college and professional athletes performing their best day in and day out.
Along with this high number of participants comes the increased opportunity for injury. In fact, 2 million high school athletes are injured during their sport every year. These injuries can vary from sprained ankles to dislocated shoulders to torn ACLs. Two common types of sports-related problems are:
1. Sprains/Strains- As the most common sports-related injury, sprains or strains can happen during nearly every physical activity. A sprain is the partial or complete tearing of ligaments which causes pain and laxity of the involved joint. Some ligament injuries heal without surgery with proper protection and rehabilitation while some are best treated with surgery.. A strain is the tearing of a muscle as a direct result of the muscle being stretched beyond it physical limit.
2 Overuse injuries Repetitive activity can produce soft tissue problems such as partial tears and tendonosis in soft tissue and can produce stress fractures in bone.
Knee and Shoulder problems are common
1 Knee problems- These can vary from overuse problems such as runner’s knee and tendonitis to severe injuries that result in long term problems if not properly treated. ACL injuries are common and require prompt evaluation and accurate treatment to prevent recurrent injury and joint damage. Over 5 million people visit an orthopedic surgeon regarding a knee injury every year.
2. Shoulder problems Overuse problems such as bursitis and biceps tendonitis are common and may be difficult to treat. In addition to controlling pain and inflammation, rehabilitation to improve strength flexibility and endurance are key.
