Health News
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- Public Health Week Tips Remind Us That Safety Is Part Of Health
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Health News
Girls are more likely than boys to have overuse injuries while participating in high school sports
Overuse injuries make up more than 50 percent of athletic injuries and are most common in children ages 13 to 17. Girls are at a higher risk than boys of overuse injuries while participating in high school sports, according to a study by researchers at The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center and published in the Journal of Pediatrics. Tendonitis, stress fractures and joint pain are examples of overuse injuries, which happen when athletes perform the same motion again and again.
In the study, Thomas Best analyzed 3,000 injury cases during a seven year period of time associated with 20 high school sports such as soccer, volleyball, gymnastics and lacrosse. Best and his team discovered the highest rate of overuse injuries happened in girls' track (3.82), followed by girls' field hockey (2.93) and girls' lacrosse (2.73). The most common overuse injuries for boys occurred in swimming and diving (1.3).
"These young people spend more time playing sports both in competition and in practice," said Best, an endowed professor in Ohio State's department of family medicine. "So there's a correlation there between the amount of time that they're playing and the increased incidence of injuries."
Over the past 10 years, high school athletic participation and intensity has gone up. Best said some high school athletes spend more than 18 hours per week participating in athletics, and some play more than one sport at a time. The most common site of overuse injuries is the lower leg, followed by the knee then the shoulder, Best said. To avoid overuse injuries, Best recommends varying movement, playing more than one sport and prioritizing rest and nutrition.
"During this point of their lives, this is when girls are developing bones at the greatest rate," Best said. "It's incredible important that they're getting the proper amounts of calcium and vitamin D."
In the study, Thomas Best analyzed 3,000 injury cases during a seven year period of time associated with 20 high school sports such as soccer, volleyball, gymnastics and lacrosse. Best and his team discovered the highest rate of overuse injuries happened in girls' track (3.82), followed by girls' field hockey (2.93) and girls' lacrosse (2.73). The most common overuse injuries for boys occurred in swimming and diving (1.3).
"These young people spend more time playing sports both in competition and in practice," said Best, an endowed professor in Ohio State's department of family medicine. "So there's a correlation there between the amount of time that they're playing and the increased incidence of injuries."
Over the past 10 years, high school athletic participation and intensity has gone up. Best said some high school athletes spend more than 18 hours per week participating in athletics, and some play more than one sport at a time. The most common site of overuse injuries is the lower leg, followed by the knee then the shoulder, Best said. To avoid overuse injuries, Best recommends varying movement, playing more than one sport and prioritizing rest and nutrition.
"During this point of their lives, this is when girls are developing bones at the greatest rate," Best said. "It's incredible important that they're getting the proper amounts of calcium and vitamin D."
- How To Keep Kids Safe From Traumatic Brain Injuries This Summer
About 1.7 million people in the U.S. suffer a traumatic brain injury each year, and nearly half a million children under 15 visit an emergency room for TBI. A brain injury is traumatic if it disrupts the normal function of the brain. Dr. Michael Egnor,...
- Task Force Recommends Changes To Protect Safety And Health Of Middle School Students Who Play Interscholastic Sports
The boys of North Marshall Middle School of Benton, Ky., after winning a Christmas tournament last year.Beth Musgrave of the Lexington Herald-Leader reports that the state Task Force on Interscholastic Athletics at the Middle School Level announced...
- Report: Bounce-house Injuries To Children Have Skyrocketed
A new report out today in the journal Pediatrics warns that, on average, 31 children a day are transported to U.S. emergency departments for treatment of bounce-house injuries, including fractured bones and muscle damage. "If this was an infectious disease,...
- Public Health Week Tips Remind Us That Safety Is Part Of Health
In celebration of 2011 National Public Health Week, being honored April 4-10, the Kentucky Department of Public Health offers tips on preventing injuries. Each year, injuries account for $80 billion spent on medical care and another $326 billion in lost...
- Summer Eye Safety
Most of us tend to concentrate on protecting our skin during the warmer months of the year. But did you know that protecting your eyes is just as important as protecting your skin, especially while participating in certain activities at home? Not only...