Injury Prevention

Preventing Little League Elbow

"Little League Elbow" -- is an inflammation of the inner elbow that affects an alarming number of youth baseball players across America. Pitchers are most affected by this injury, which is the result of the excessive stress on the growth plate in a child’s forearm caused by excessive throwing. Children who experience little league elbow often complain of pain on the inside of their elbows and an inability to fully extend their arms.

Here are a few steps you can take to prevent little league elbow before it starts. 

1. Monitor pitch counts. 

•  9-10  year olds should throw no more than 50 pitches per game, or 75 in a week.
• 11-12 year olds should be kept to 75 pitches per game and 100 per week.
• 13-15 year olds should keep their counts under 75 per game and 125 per week.​

​2. Monitor the frequency of  pitching.

The number of times you pitch during the week is also important. Even in the major leagues, starting pitchers throw only once every four days. Rest time should depend on the number of pitches thrown in the last game. For pitchers ages 7-16, pitch counts can be easily broken up into units of 20. For example, 20 pitches or fewer require one day of rest; 20-40 require two days off; 40-60 require three days of rest; and anything above 60 pitches requires a break of at least four days.​

March is National Athletic Training Month.  The 2013 theme is "Every Body Need an Athletic Trainer".

• An estimated 1.4 million injuries, 500,000 doctor visits, and 30,000 hospitalizations occur annually among U.S. high school student athletes participating in practices or competitions in 2006, according to the Center for Disease Control.
• 62% of sports related injuries occur during practices, according to Safe Kids USA
• 75 % of all school-related spinal cord injuries occur during sports activities according to a 2007 study by the American Academy of Neurology.
• 15% of high school sports injuries were classified as severe by the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons according to a 2008 study
• More than 5% of high school athletes are concussed each year from collision and contact sports according Journal of Athletic Training
• 41% of concussed high school athletes returned to competition too soon according to the American Academy of Neurology

Athletic trainers are highly skilled licensed health care professionals who work under the direction of physicians and are uniquely qualified to specialize in providing health care to the physically active population.  

If Mary Jane Bender had her way, commands such as, "Just tough it out" and "Go back in and play the game" would be banned from youth soccer fields.

"It's just absurd, and I don't understand it when I hear coaches and parents telling their children these things and not believing that they are really hurt," said Bender, executive director of the Arlington Heights-based Illinois Youth Soccer Association. "These kids love to play soccer, and when they are saying they can't play because it hurts, there's no reason why a coach or parent shouldn't believe them."

To read more visit:  http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/ct-x-0229-year-round-soccer-20120229,0,6396030.story

"Protect the game of football. Protect our children's brains. The hope is that we can do both. Biology and physics suggest otherwise. Safer does not mean safe. In locker rooms and school board meetings, quiet funerals and noisy grandstands, the future of youth football may not be matter of risk management. It may be a matter of risk acceptance". 
http://www.thepostgame.com/blog/hruby-tuesday/201201/end-game-brain-trauma-and-future-youth-football-america