Youth Sports Injuries

Let’s start with the most counterintuitive thing: when a kid collapses during hot weather exercise and their mental status is off, the right order is to cool them down on site first, then send them to the hospital. Not call an ambulance and figure it out on the way. The international consensus is blunt—cool first, transport second. Because what determines whether they suffer permanent damage isn’t how fast they get to the ER, but how long their body temperature stays above 40°C. ...

Bottom line up front: If your child has a painful bump just below the kneecap, it’s not growing pains. It has a name: Osgood-Schlatter, also known as tibial tubercle apophysitis. And contrary to what many people have heard—it doesn’t “completely go away when you grow up." I’m writing this for parents who have 10- to 15-year-olds currently running and jumping in sports. How to tell if it’s growing pains Growing pains usually happen in both legs, ache in the evening or middle of the night, and have no clear point of tenderness. By the next morning, it’s like nothing happened. ...