Overuse Injuries

Recognize and prevent common injuries that could sideline your athlete.

- Christa C. Hogan

For many kids, playing sports is an important part of growing up. They learn more than the right way to hit/ kick/throw/dribble a ball. They develop a healthy lifestyle while learning teamwork, sportsmanship and perseverance. Unfortunately, along with those great life lessons can come sports injuries.According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2.6 million kids age 19 and younger visit the emergency room for sports- and recreation-related injuries each year.

Dr. Edwin R. Cadet, M.D., is an orthopaedic surgeon with Raleigh Orthopaedic. He’s also an official orthopaedic surgeon for North Carolina State University’s athletic department. With more kids involved in sports these days, Cadet says he sees a wide range of overuse injuries. These injuries occur when growing bodies are stressed from repeat motions like throwing, running or jumping. Often, Cadet’s patients are children who specialize in a single sport or play for extended seasons.

“My personal recommendation is not to specialize until later in high school,” Cadet says. “It’s been demonstrated that the earlier kids specialize in one sport, the higher their rate for injury.”