Evaluating Adult Decision-Making Modifiers in Support of Youth Contact-Sport Participation

The Effect of Sport Specialization on Injury Risk in NCAA Athletes: Results From the SAFE Consortium

OBJECTIVE

Youth athletes are beginning to specialize in a single sport more often. Previous studies in sports medicine and orthopedics have shown an association between intensity of sport specialization and incidence of injuries. This study is the first of its kind to explore the effects of early sport specialization on injury risk through a multicenter framework with a concentration on NCAA athletics.

DESIGN

Retrospective cohort study.

SETTING

SAFE Consortium.

PARTICIPANTS

A total of 211 collegiate athletes from the NCAA's 3 levels of competition: Division I, II, and III. Data were collected by the SAFE investigators.

INTERVENTION

N/A.

MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES

Participants completed a questionnaire about their demographics, sport participation, specialization status, physical injuries, recovery period, and treatment method. Specialization status was calculated with a previously published 3-point scale: low, moderate, and high. Injuries were categorized as upper extremity injuries (UEIs) and lower extremity injuries (LEIs).

RESULTS

Highly specialized athletes were more likely to report UEIs and LEIs than low specialized athletes ( P < 0.0001). Moderate specialization, in contrast to low specialization, was associated with a higher likelihood of LEIs ( P = 0.03) but not UEIs ( P = 0.052). Highly specialized athletes were more likely to report an injury of any kind.

CONCLUSIONS

The SAFE investigators found high specialization was associated with a history of UEIs and LEIs. Return to play was longer for highly specialized athletes versus low specialized athletes (112 days and 85 days, respectively). Highly specialized athletes were more likely to be from Division I and to require surgery.

Based on sustainable development of skating sports training new ecological and environmental protection measures

In recent years, under the background of exam-oriented physical education reform, the government has issued a lot of physical education documents and policies. As a result, many schools have made fundamental changes in physical education activities. These policies are mainly aimed at getting young people to be more active and autonomous in school sports. This requires physical education training teachers must adhere to the people-oriented, student-oriented, so as to highlight the subject status of students. Based on this, students should establish a good sports values and ethics and form a good habit of lifelong sports, so as to further promote the sustainable development of youth sports activities. Based on the ecological theory of sustainable development as the background, this study constructs a unified theory of Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT) model for the sustainable training and development of youth skating sports training institutions. This study selects the youth skating sports training institutions in Beijing, China as the investigation object, covering small, medium and large institutions of different sizes, and analyzes based on the statistical data in 2023 and the results of field research. The results show that the application of this model not only increases the willingness of youth skating training institutions to continue to participate by 3.66%, but also promotes the diversified development of youth skating training. In addition, this study also discusses the environmental protection measures implemented in the process of skating training to ensure that the training activities are sustainable while reducing the impact on the environment, so as to build a sustainable development of the new ecology of skating sports training.

Effects of Cumulative Head Impact Exposure in Adolescent Male Contact and Collision Sport Student Athletes

OBJECTIVE

This prospective cohort study aimed to investigate the association between head impact exposure (HIE) and neuropsychological sequelae in high school football and ice hockey players over 1 year.

SETTING

Community sample.

PARTICIPANTS

A cohort of 52 adolescent American football and ice hockey players were enrolled in the study, with a final study sample of 35 included in analyses.

DESIGN

The study followed a prospective cohort design, with participants undergoing neuropsychological screening and accelerometer-based measurement of HIE over 1 season.

MAIN MEASURES

Changes in cognition, emotions, behavior, and reported symptoms were assessed using standardized neuropsychological tests and self-reported questionnaires.

RESULTS

Cumulative HIE was not consistently associated with changes in cognition, emotions, behavior, or reported symptoms. However, it was linked to an isolated measure of processing speed, showing inconsistent results based on the type of HIE. History of previous concussion was associated with worsened verbal memory recognition (ImPACT Verbal Memory) but not on a more robust measure of verbal memory (California Verbal Learning Test [CVLT]). Reported attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder history predicted improved neurocognitive change scores. No associations were found between reported history of anxiety/depression or headaches/migraines and neuropsychological change scores.

CONCLUSION

Overall, our findings do not support the hypothesis that greater HIE is associated with an increase in neuropsychological sequelae over time in adolescent football and ice hockey players. The results align with the existing literature, indicating that HIE over 1 season of youth sports is not consistently associated with significant neuropsychological changes. However, the study is limited by a small sample size, attrition over time, and the absence of performance validity testing for neurocognitive measures. Future studies with larger and more diverse samples, longer follow-up, and integration of advanced imaging and biomarkers are needed to comprehensively understand the relationship between HIE and neurobehavioral outcomes. Findings can inform guidelines for safe youth participation in contact sports while promoting the associated health and psychosocial benefits.

Review of Media Representation of Sport Concussion and Implications for Youth Sports

Participation in sport can incur a risk of sport-related concussion (SRC). Media representation of SRC is frequently at odds with up-to-date scientific data. Our findings confirm a significant amount of false, confusing, or misleading terminology used in reporting on the topic, which is concerning as media is as a major source of SRC information. Individuals have a variable base of knowledge pertaining to this injury, and accurate understanding of SRC does not always correlate to appropriate action. Inaccurate portrayal of SRC media may contribute to the confusion surrounding it. Popular media presents an opportunity to convey evidence-based information on SRC.

Psychosocial aspects of sports medicine in pediatric athletes: Current concepts in the 21st century

Behavioral aspects of organized sports activity for pediatric athletes are considered in a world consumed with winning at all costs. In the first part of this treatise, we deal with a number of themes faced by our children in their sports play. These concepts include the lure of sports, sports attrition, the mental health of pediatric athletes (i.e., effects of stress, anxiety, depression, suicide in athletes, ADHD and stimulants, coping with injuries, drug use, and eating disorders), violence in sports (i.e., concepts of the abused athlete including sexual abuse), dealing with supervisors (i.e., coaches, parents), peers, the talented athlete, early sports specialization and sports clubs. In the second part of this discussion, we cover ergolytic agents consumed by young athletes in attempts to win at all costs. Sports doping agents covered include anabolic steroids (anabolic-androgenic steroids or AAS), androstenedione, dehydroepiandrostenedione (DHEA), human growth hormone (hGH; also its human recombinant homologue: rhGH), clenbuterol, creatine, gamma hydroxybutyrate (GHB), amphetamines, caffeine and ephedrine. Also considered are blood doping that includes erythropoietin (EPO) and concepts of gene doping. In the last section of this discussion, we look at disabled pediatric athletes that include such concepts as athletes with spinal cord injuries (SCIs), myelomeningocele, cerebral palsy, wheelchair athletes, and amputee athletes; also covered are pediatric athletes with visual impairment, deafness, and those with intellectual disability including Down syndrome. In addition, concepts of autonomic dysreflexia, boosting and atlantoaxial instability are emphasized. We conclude that clinicians and society should protect our precious pediatric athletes who face many challenges in their involvement with organized sports in a world obsessed with winning. There is much we can do to help our young athletes find benefit from sports play while avoiding or blunting negative consequences of organized sport activities.