Pediatric overuse injuries in sports

Overuse injuries in the pediatric and adolescent population are a growing problem in the United States as more children participate in recreational and organized sports. It is not uncommon for children and adolescents to play on multiple teams simultaneously or to be involved in sports year-round. Without adequate rest, the demands of exercise can exceed the body's ability to repair tissues, leading to repetitive microtrauma and overuse injury. Unlike in adults, the consequences of overuse injury in the pediatric and adolescent athlete are far more serious because the growing bones are vulnerable to stress. The ability to identify individuals who are at risk of overuse injuries is key so that education, prevention, and early diagnosis and treatment can occur. Preventive measures of modifying training factors (ie, magnitude, intensity, and frequency of sports participation) and correcting improper biomechanics (alignment, laxity, inflexibility, and muscle imbalance) should always be part of the management plan.