Does Your Adolescent Need Physiotherapy?
Did you know that on average girls will grow a total of 25cm and boys 28cm during their pubertal growth spurt?
So during puberty, our young athletes are dealing with changes in height , limb length and mass. On top of that they also experience reductions in coordination and neuromuscular control during this time… meaning that they have a bigger heavier body to move around and less of an idea of where their body is in space!
Any wonder our junior athletes sustain some injuries!
We can’t manage adolescents as if they are just small adults when it comes to injuries. During adolescence, the presence of growth cartilage and a reduction in bone density following growth spurts means that bones are relatively weaker compared to muscles or tendons and can be a site of injury. E.g. An insult that causes a muscle tear in an adult could create an avulsion fracture in an adolescent athlete.
So what is an avulsion fracture? An avulsion fracture is when a small chip of bone is pulled off by a relatively stronger muscle-tendon or ligament.
They are more common in children and adolescents (but can also be seen in adults), due to the relatively weaker nature of bone and cartilage in this group!
You may see an avulsion injury with a sudden, forceful muscle contraction during sports or activity. The player will experience pain and reduced power in that activity following the injury(it will often look like an adult “muscle strain”).
Contact our Physiotherapists in the Sutherland Shire today and start you teenagers road to recovery. Or view more about adolescent injuries here.
