Young Athletes, Knee Pain and Injuries.

I was walking home the other day, and I overheard some teenagers talking – one of them said she always had to ice both her knees after the soccer games because they hurt so much – she said it in such a matter of fact way, and as if it was ok – or just normal circumstance.
Well yes I do frequently have to help young athletes with knee pain – but unfortunately many of them think it is ok to have a little pain, some pain, or even a lot of pain after their sport – no it is not ok! not at any level is it ok to have pain in your knee after sports – unless that is if you can make a precise determination that the pain is muscle related and not joint related – that would be another discussion though – so what are we to do to solve this problem of accepting knee pain as just daily circumstance – well we start with us parents – yes I too have at one time or another ignored – not paid quite enough attention to my childrens complaints of knee pain (shoemaker’s children syndrome) but I have corrected this. Schools and their coaches need to be reminded that these children might end up with chronic knee disorders – solving the problem through making people aware that there is a problem with it is a start – but also while overtraining needs to be addressed the real problem could very well be the technique that is being used – the wrong technique will result in injury – technique is first and foremost – but specific technique training for most sports in school programs is often taught by a generalist, a keen athlete, but not a specialist – even when a specialist is available time constraints force kids to over practice and to study – yes study in the academic sense what the correct form is – some kids do it naturally – most do not – more later… Steven Barteck PT

Steven Barteck PT is the co-founder of Oshman & Barteck Physical Therapy, Licensed in NY the past 14 years. Their office is located in Midtown NYC where he provides physical therapy care.