Injury Prevention

According to recent estimates, over 82,000 people will seek medical treatment this coming year for injuries suffered while skiing, 62,000 will be injured playing hockey, 37,000 snowboarding, and 25,000 while sledding. Over 270,000 Americans are expected to visit hospital emergency rooms after suffering winter sports-related injuries this year. Most are preventable.

An youth athlete's natural flexibility varies by age. Those with poor muscle flexibility experience more soreness, tenderness and pain after exercise. The less flexible the muscle, the more easily it is injured.   Here are simple tests to test flexibility of major muscles and tendons prone to injury in soccer.

One of the most important parts of the preparticipation physical evaluation (PPE) most sports programs require is the taking of a complete medical history. Parents should make sure that, regardless of the PPE form their child's program uses, the health professional asks the right questions.

Proper conditioning can reduce the risk of injury in all sports, including baseball and soccer. It is particularly important for female athletes, who are predisposed to instability or dislocation of the kneecap (patella), pain and problems under the kneecap, and non-contact injuries to the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL), especially in sports like soccer and basketball that require twisting and cutting.

One of the biggest hazards in outside field sports, yet often the most overlooked, is the field itself. One quarter of all injuries (fully 25% percent of all soccer injuries,for instance, result from poor field conditions). Parents can't count on the referee to inspect the field before a game begins to ensure that it is in a playable condition because oftentimes he or she barely arrives at the field in time for the game itself. Nor should parents assume that the coaches have inspected the field: they are usually so busy getting their team ready to play and giving last minute instructions that they also don't have time to check the field for holes, puddles, broken glass, stones or other debris. The solution: set up a field detail of parents to do the inspection.

Along with strains sprains are among the most common injuries in sports. All sports and exercises, even walking, carry a risk of such injuries. Sprains can take as little as a few days to heal or as long as a few weeks. To reduce the risk of sprains, experts, including the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons, make a number of easy-to-follow recommendations.

The Consumer Federation Of America makes three recommendations to parents regarding bike helmet safety and use: (1) make sure children always wear helmets while biking; (2) make sure the helmet fits; and (3) praise the child for wearing a helmet and make sure you wear yours too.