It is important to instill in children the love of sport since they are young, since physical activity has multiple benefits for their physical and mental health and for their development. But physiotherapists warn of the importance of educating also in the sports injury prevention.
And, according to the latest study published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine, and which has been echoed by the Spanish Association of Physiotherapists, the 56.6% of anterior cruciate knee ligament injuries occur in children between five and 14 years by the practice of certain sports, mainly of ball.
Most frequent sports injuries in children
Following the recent analysis published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine, the Spanish Association of Physiotherapists (AEF) in collaboration with the COVAP Cup (Cooperativa Ganadera del Valle de los Pedroches) have warned of the increased sports injuries in childhood, as well as hospital interventions derived from this reason.
According to Fernando Ramos, president of the AEF, ball sports are usually related to knee injuries, while in contact sports there are mostly traumatic injuries, such as sprains, muscle tears or fractures.
Physiotherapists warn that the severity of conditions in the musculoskeletal system of children due to trauma or overexertion, can have serious consequences on their health.
For the experts, there are several reasons that may be behind sports injuries in childhood and adolescence, although the main ones could be summarized in:
- The early age in which children begin to play sports
"In those under eight years of age, basic motor skills and efficient motor responses have not yet been developed, while children of prepubertal age undergo changes in bone growth that can lead to musculotendinous pathologies" - explains the president of the AEF.
He high time exposure to physical activity, sometimes causing overexertion that can hurt the child. In addition, there are more and more minors who play sports competitively, with a dedication and a level of demand that sometimes does not match their age.
He different level of development that there may be among the players of the same team, and it is frequent that extracurricular sports activities are organized by ages or academic courses, instead of taking into account the abilities, strength, weight and corpulence of each child.
Lack of warm up and stretching before starting physical exercise.
What steps can be taken to prevent injuries?
The Physical activity in childhood has great benefits. It helps prevent heart disease, psychological disorders, bone diseases and some cancers, and of course to prevent and treat childhood obesity.
Therefore, it is important that parents instill in children the practice of sports activities since they are young (riding a bicycle, playing ball, running, hiking, swimming ...), since practically any correctly guided activity, it will be good and healthy for them.
Although some of the injuries that occur are fortuitous and hardly avoidable, since the Spanish Association of Physiotherapists stress the importance of educating children in the adoption of measures that help them, as far as possible, to prevent problems:
- First, it is important that the child learns to correctly identify an injury when it has occurred, so that can be treated quickly and efficiently in its initial stages, since the more time passes, the forecast and the consequences will be worse.
This point is not always easy to put into practice, because children do not know their body as well as adults do, so parents should be aware of small inflammations, redness, pain or discomfort that does not stop with the passage of the days.
In the case of serious injuries, Fernando Ramos warns of the importance of being treated on time since "They can cause joint instability, alterations in bone growth due to the involvement of the cartilage of conjunction or delays in healing processes that can prolong the symptoms".
- Once the injury has occurred, experts insist on the importance of follow the medical instructions for a correct recovery, as well as putting yourself in the hands of physiotherapists for the practice of therapeutic exercises that help the patient recover.
Either in the case of serious injuries, such as minor injuries (sprains, muscle aches ...), parents and coaches they must take great care of the child's rest, and prevent him from playing again or competing until he is fully recovered. And it is that a badly healed lesion can have serious consequences and affect even in the long term in the adult stage.
- On the other hand, physiotherapists advise avoid sports specialization at an early age due to the repetitive movements and the decompensation of the muscular work that supposes.
Therefore, they advise that children practice several disciplines simultaneously to improve the acquisition of extensive motor coordination skills. In addition, at all times the training must be conducted by professionals and correctly dosed.
Nor should we forget to use a protective equipment for the child's size appropriate to the sport you practice. In this way, the use of shin pads, helmets, elbow pads, wristbands ... depending on the sport, can help us prevent many injuries.
And last but not least, from the AEF and COVAP remind us that children should maintain proper hydration and healthy eating because, although it is not a preventive measure in itself, a good diet helps to recover from a physical effort and to keep the body in healthy conditions for the practice of exercise.
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