By Donald Pennington, DO

Every day, millions of youths in the United States participate in sports activities, from soccer fields and snow-covered slopes to baseball diamonds and ice rinks.

It's called playing, but sports activities are more than play. Participation in athletics improves physical fitness, coordination and self-discipline, and gives children valuable opportunities to learn teamwork.

Sports activities can also result in injuries - some minor, some serious and some lead to lifelong medical problems.

Today's overachieving kids are starting sports earlier and training longer and harder, often before they enter kindergarten, and many of them are suffering overuse injuries as a result

Overuse injuries are a result from overtraining. Even 10 years ago it was popular to be a two or three-sport athlete switching to a new sport each season. This seems to be a thing of the past as the competition, access and seasons expand to be year-round. Now with increased competition starting at or before grade school children are more times than not choosing one sport early on and sticking with it. This gives them a competitive edge as they develop their coordination, strength and reflexes for that sport. However, too much of one sport can have its drawbacks. Orthopedic pediatric surgeons estimate that 30 to 50 percent of children sports injuries are now overuse injuries as opposed to acute traumatic injuries like fractures, bruises and strains of the past.

Experts attribute this increase to the fact that more youth today are specializing in one sport at an early age and training year-round.

This specialization seems to have come with a price. Playing a variety of different sports throughout the year was a form of cross-training that was extremely beneficial to a young body's physical development. Playing multiple sports, at different times of the year gives some muscles a chance to rest while others are being worked. Now those same muscles and joints are used non-stop and have no recovery time.

Training the same muscles year-round is believed to be the main cause of the rise in overuse injuries in young athletes. The repetitive stress can cause young bodies to break down. When you stress the same body parts over and over again, there's a risk of injury.

Prevent overuse with conditioning and training

Most overuse injuries can be prevented with proper conditioning and training. Cross-training in moderation throughout the year helps prevent any one area of the body from becoming overworked and stressed and to help maintain overall fitness levels. Children should be encouraged to participate in sports at a level consistent with their abilities and interests. Pushing children beyond these limits is discouraged as is specialization in a single sport before adolescence.

Parents and coaches should be cautious when a young athlete has significant pain and should not encourage a child to “play through” the pain.

The American College of Sports Medicine estimates that 50 percent of overuse injuries in children and adolescents are preventable. Pre-participation screening, required by most schools, should be encouraged for all children involved in organized athletics. This screening assesses general health and can detect conditions that may limit participation or predispose an athlete to an injury.

Signs of excess

Because there are no set guidelines for what constitutes overtraining, parents, athletes and coaches need to be aware of possible warning signs that athletes are overtraining which include:

• Excessive use of over-the-counter pain medications
• Changes in an athlete's performance or techniques
• Psychosocial changes

Donald Pennington, DO, is an orthopedic surgeon at Samaritan Orthopaedics & Sports Medicine in Corvallis.  He may be reached at (541) 768-4810.