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Beyond the Basics: Keeping Young Athletes Safe in Winter Sports

Beyond the Basics: Keeping Young Athletes Safe in Winter Sports

by | Feb 8, 2018 | Sports Medicine

It’s well known that each sport has its own rules and regulations. These are meant to protect participants from known risks and injuries. For example, in snow skiing and snowboarding, helmets are certainly the most important piece of equipment to reduce the severity of head injury with falls. This is especially true for faster, more experienced skiers. Wrist guards are also a top priority to prevent broken bones during falls while snowboarding.

Large joints, like the shoulder, knee and ankle, are at risk for injuries during falls and with extreme motions that occur with near-falls in snow sports. General fitness, cross-training and pre-season preparation, all in partnership with sport-specific safety training, will lead to improved body control and potentially, fewer falls. Watch this video of Henry Ellis, M.D., talking about his experience as a team physician for the U.S. Ski Team and their off-season training habits.

Researchers continue to look at non-contact knee injuries in sports like soccer and basketball. As with snow skiing and snowboarding, these sports put the knee at risk for injury when the leg is planted and twisted with the knee in a slightly flexed position. Training programs can prepare athletes to better control their knees in these risky positions. Strengthening leg and trunk muscles also improves stability and control. Improved control leads to lower risk of injury.

Injury prevention is not just about following the rules and wearing the proper equipment. Here are our suggestions to help your young athlete safely enjoy many sports:

  • Endurance training prevents early fatigue, which is known to cause falls and injuries in any sport. Ride a bicycle or run to improve your cardiovascular and muscle endurance.
  • Leg strengthening exercises create balance around the hip and knee joints. Use resistance exercises to strengthen on all major muscle groups of the legs.
  • Upper body strengthening exercises create stability for the shoulder, a very mobile joint. Perform weight-bearing activities to strengthen the upper back and stabilize the shoulder blade.
  • Core strengthening provides stability that helps with balance as well as proper form. Perform traditional abdominal strengthening exercises as well as activities that incorporate the entire body.
  • Plyometric activities improve neuromuscular control in dynamic positions. Perform jumping and landing exercises with a focus on control and proper form.

For information about injury prevention and pediatric sports medicine, please visit our website at Scottish Rite.

Improving Care with Patient Reported Outcome Measures

Improving Care with Patient Reported Outcome Measures

by | Nov 1, 2017 | Research & Innovation

The goals for providers at Scottish Rite Hospital are to understand symptoms and concerns, develop the best action plan for treatment and to ensure that treatment is effective. We use standard questionnaires, called patient reported outcome measures (PROM), as tools to help us accomplish these goals. Patients are asked to complete these during or just before clinic visits or procedures. They are asked to complete them on an iPad, tablet or on paper. The completed questionnaires may be used for treatment decisions as well as research. Staff orthopedist Henry Ellis, M.D. says, “PROMs are valuable communication tools that can help improve patient satisfaction, symptom management and enhance the quality of care for our patients.”

Below are common questions patients and their families have about the ’WHAT’, ‘WHY’ and ‘HOW’ in regards to these PROMs.

WHAT

What are patient reported outcome measures (PROMs)?
These are standard questionnaires that have been developed by medical experts and research teams across the country. Patients are asked to respond to these at various points throughout treatment. They help the health care team provide appropriate care based on the patient’s physical abilities, goals and emotions. The answers to these questionnaires, along with other information, can help us determine the effectiveness of the treatment.

WHY

Why do providers ask their patients to complete the PROM before they meet?
It is important to establish a baseline of how a patient is feeling and what they can do so we can easily identify changes over time.

Why do we use PROMs instead of just asking the questions during the appointment?
There are a few reasons questions may be asked in the form of a PROM instead of during the clinical visit. These forms are used at many hospitals outside of Scottish Rite Hospital and have been designed based on the patient’s age. The questions are asked in a very consistent format at all sites so the results can be compared across the larger populations. PROMs are a place for the patient to document their opinions, feelings and function, which are combined with the discussions with your provider to make the best treatment plan for you.

HOW

How do doctors know what questionnaires to use?
For specific conditions, there are series of questions that have been shown in previous research studies to effectively track improvement in the patient’s ability to function in day-to-day activities. A patient with a shoulder problem will be asked to answer different questions than a patient with a knee problem.

Filling out PROMs seems to make a visit take longer. How is Scottish Rite Hospital taking that into consideration?
Scottish Rite Hospital is very excited to be using electronic software designed for use by our patients. Although not all forms are available electronically just yet, teams of clinicians and researchers are working to get questionnaires available in electronic formats to be answered on an IPad or tablet. With the use of electronic systems, some of the PROMs can be combined to remove all duplicate questions. This will reduce the number of questions patients must complete. After a patient enters answers electronically, the software scores and organizes the answers so the results are available to the provider right away. Additionally, the electronic software systems allow us to send follow-up forms to patients electronically, in many cases, eliminating this step in the office.

How do PROMs help our researchers?
For studies that evaluate treatment options or outcomes, changes in symptoms and function can be measured in many ways. We can measure changes in bone length, joint angles or even tissue healing using advanced imaging techniques. The PROM provides a standardized and objective way for the patient to report progress and allows our team to track how our patients are improving over time. This information can improve the health and satisfaction of our patients, help identify the most effective treatments and ensure we are providing the best care we can.

Learn more about research conducted at Scottish Rite Hospital.

Jesus’ Moment – Sports Medicine

Jesus’ Moment – Sports Medicine

by | Oct 2, 2017 | Sports Medicine

Jesus has loved soccer since age 6. When he turned 12, a torn ACL took him out of the game. Thankfully, Jesus was in the hands of Scottish Rite Hospital sports medicine physicians who repaired his knee and got him back on the field – goal scored!

Give a child their moment: A contribution of $200 helps support the treatment and therapy of a young athlete receiving care from the hospital’s Center for Excellence in Sports Medicine. To donate or learn more, visit scottishritehospital.org/donate/more-ways-to-give/.

For more information on our Center for Excellence in Sports Medicine, visit scottishritehospital.org/sports.

FOX 4: Study finds concussion concerns for girls

FOX 4: Study finds concussion concerns for girls

by | Sep 15, 2017 | Press Coverage, Sports Medicine

Visit FOX 4’s website to watch Miller’s full interview and learn more about the importance of following proper concussion protocol.

A new study found girls were significantly more likely than boys to return to play
the same day following a soccer-related concussion, placing them at risk for more significant
injury.

The study examined young athletes, average age 14, who sustained a concussion while playing
soccer and who were treated at a pediatric sports medicine clinic in Texas. Of the 87 athletes
diagnosed with a soccer-related concussion, two-thirds (66.7 percent) were girls. Among them,
more than half (51.7 percent) resumed playing in a game or practice the same day as their injury,
compared to just 17.2 percent of boys.

“The girl soccer players were 5 times more likely than boys to return to play on the same day as
their concussion,” said Shane M. Miller, MD, FAAP, senior author of the abstract and a sports
medicine physician at Texas Scottish Rite Hospital for Children. “This is cause for concern,
especially with previous studies showing that girls suffer twice as many concussions as boys,” he
said.

“Consistent with our findings in other sports, young soccer players are returning to play on the
same day despite recommendations from medical organizations, such as the American Academy
of Pediatrics, and laws in all 50 states intended to protect their growing brains,” he said. “Despite
increased concerns about the risks of concussions, the culture among athletes to tough it out and
play through an injury often takes priority over the importance of reporting an injury and coming
out of a game or practice.”

FriscoVoice: Youth Sports, Pediatric Orthopedics Take Center-Court in Frisco, Texas

FriscoVoice: Youth Sports, Pediatric Orthopedics Take Center-Court in Frisco, Texas

by | Sep 5, 2017 | Press Coverage, Sports Medicine

Originally published on Forbes’ FriscoVoice.

As the saying goes, everything is bigger in Texas and the state’s appetite for athletics certainly holds up its end of the bargain when it comes to that designation. In fact, Texans would argue that no one takes their sports as seriously as the Lone Star state –  especially when it comes to youth athletics.

From Little League baseball and high school football, to everything in between, sports are a big deal in Texas. Keeping the state’s athletic machine firing on all cylinders is no easy task, particularly in today’s world where athletic specialization and elite training activities are creating a growing concern for increasing rates of repetitive stress injuries for children. In this athletic climate, there is an ever-increasing demand for pediatric orthopedic specialists.

Among those leading the sports-medicine charge in the state is Texas Scottish Rite Hospital for Children, a world-renowned leader in the treatment of pediatric orthopedic conditions. The hospital certainly operates on the leading edge of medical technology, but it has a much more grounded mission – helping the less fortunate.

Scottish Rite Hospital was established in 1921 when a group of Texas Mason approached Dallas’ first orthopedic surgeon, Dr. W. B. Carrell, about caring for children with polio regardless of a family’s ability to pay. Since then Scottish Rite Hospital has treated more than 275,000 children, with more than 40,000 clinic visits each year. The hospital, guided by the principle of giving children back their childhood, takes a multidisciplinary approach to care, tailoring treatment to the individual needs of each child and family.

Scottish Rite Hospital, which has trained more pediatric orthopedic surgeons than any other institution in the world and holds more than 25 patents for pediatric orthopedic devices and techniques, is now planning to give even more kids their childhoods back, by helping them get back on the field of play.

Based on the state’s burgeoning athletic population and a growing need for innovative sports medicine, Scottish Rite Hospital will be expanding its operations through the opening of a new location outside of Dallas, its home for more than 95 years. The new facility, located about 25 miles north in Frisco, Texas, is expected to open in Fall 2018 and will be anchored by the Center for Excellence in Sports Medicine.

“This location made a lot of sense for a number of reasons during the initial phase of our site-selection process,” said Jeremy Howell, vice president for Scottish Rite Hospital’s North Campus. “For starters, we noticed that a quarter of our patient population was coming from this region, and while we serve patients from all over the country, Frisco was a logical fit for our future growth.

“We also saw a very active youth population in Frisco where we could easily share our expertise and innovations. Sports medicine is the fastest growing sub-specialty in pediatric orthopedics, so we are pleased to align with one of the most sports-minded communities in the state.”

In both locations, the hospital will continue to advance care through innovative research and teaching programs, while training physicians from around the world.

“The new facility will have an extensive physical therapy and rehabilitation component to provide quality, first-class patient care, as well as a number of other features in alignment with our core beliefs surrounding research and education,” said Assistant Chief of Staff Philip L. Wilson, M.D., who will oversee the sports medicine practice in Frisco.  “Our revolutionary movement science lab will use 3-D motion capture technology to analyze complex musculoskeletal movements and help evaluate the efficacy of treatments, providing new levels of insight to the pediatric orthopedic community.

The new facility will also further expand the hospital’s focus on education by hosting lectures and seminars for medical professionals through its conference center and teaching facility. Scottish Rite Hospital puts a premium on teaching and educating families and community providers about the conditions we treat,” Wilson added.

As one of the fastest-growing communities in the nation, Frisco is on the move.  And as construction continues on Scottish Rite Hospital’s Frisco campus, some of the things that pediatric sports medicine considers – like growth, speed and strength – have a striking similarity with Frisco’s evolution as a one of the brightest spots for development in the U.S.

Frisco, whose population has grown 380 percent since 2000, continues to draw new residents from around the globe. Known for its sports culture, exemplary schools and diverse community, the city is a magnet for a skilled workforce attracted to Frisco’s family-friendly atmosphere.

Supported by strong infrastructure, exceptional leadership and quality commercial development, Frisco has also been recognized by Money magazine as one of the top 100 places to live in the U.S.

As Frisco continues to expand, it will have a long-term partner in Scottish Rite Hospital. Together they will help keep Texas at the top of youth sports and safety.