Year-round competitive sports and early specialization impact growing bones, joints

Summertime means T-ball, Little League and other forms of competitive baseball for many youngsters. But for kids playing at younger and younger ages, competing at a high level on a year-round schedule, baseball season can result in injuries previously seen more commonly in adult athletes.

"Historically, kids did multiple activities, changing sports according to season and it was less organized. Now the trend is kids at younger and younger ages playing one sport, year-round, with no break," says Dr. Glenn Reinhart, a pediatric orthopedic surgeon at Advocate Children's Hospital.

"The issues in pediatric sports medicine that I see are overuse injuries and traumatic injuries."

Reinhart, who is fellowship trained in both pediatric orthopedic surgery and sports medicine, has treated an uptick in these injuries over the past decade of his 20-year career.

Kids today are more likely to participate in traveling year-round leagues and less likely to gather for pickup games at their neighborhood park - a more common occurrence for kids growing up in previous generations, Reinhart said.

Growing bones are less resilient to stress, putting children and teens at increased risk for overuse injuries. If the condition is not treated, it could cause deformity of the limb and permanent disability, the American Orthopaedic Society for Sports Medicine warns.

Overuse or repetitive stress injuries result from over-stressing muscles, joints, tendons and bones. Examples include tennis elbow, swimmer's shoulder, youth pitching elbow, runner's knee, Achilles tendinitis and shin splints.

Traumatic injuries on the rise among young athletes include meniscus tears (one of the most common knee injuries, which can lead to anterior cruciate ligament surgery) and "Tommy John" elbow surgery.

Named for the Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher who first had the procedure in 1974, Tommy John surgical reconstructions have had a high success rate among professional athletes.

A study published last year found a startling increase in youth baseball players undergoing Tommy John surgery, which involves replacing a damaged ulnar collateral ligament (UCL) in the elbow with a tendon from another part of the body.

Reinhart recommends parents follow the American Academy of Pediatrics' tips on preventing overuse injuries:

• Undergo a pre-participation physical evaluation from a medical provider to ensure readiness

• Avoid specializing in one sport prior to late adolescence

• Limit participation in a single sport to five days a week

• Sign up for just one team and one sport per season

• Take at least one day off per week from organized activity to recover physically and mentally

• Take a combined three months off per year (may be divided throughout the year in one-month increments) from a single sport

• Increases in weekly training time, mileage or repetitions should be no more than 10 percent per week

• Cross train

• Perform drills in different ways

• Children's health is a continuing series. This week's article is courtesy of Advocate Children's Hospital. For more information, visit www.advocatechildrenshospital.com.