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Stiff and Painful Shoulder
While sports are a great way for children, adolescents and adults to get fit, stay healthy and gain all the benefits of interacting in a team atmosphere, there are considerable risks for injury, strain and pain.
In theory, the more contact the sport contains, the more risk of injury. For sports like hockey, rugby and football this rings true, but there are injuries prevalent throughout skiing and tennis as well. It can also come down to having the correct technique, equipment and training.
Adolescents are more susceptible to the occurrence of sports injuries, however the degree of severity varies. The most frequently occurring sports injuries are those to ligaments (sprains) and those to muscles (strains), rather than broken bones. Only 5 percent of sports injuries involve broken bones, and this is often the case for children undergoing rapid growth spurts, when bones particularly sensitive. If treating a growing child, regard any point tenderness over a bone as worthy of medical attention. Bones are more pliable in adults; however fractures for children and adolescents should heal quickly with minimal after-effects.
The most frequently occurring injuries in youngsters are inflammation and pain at the interior tendon joining the knee and the tibia, known as Osteochondritis, and knee pain caused when the surface of the knee (patella) is damaged. Osteochondritis dessicans, or the release of fragments of bone and cartilage into the knee joint is also common, and risks permanently affecting the joint. The final frequently occurring injury is shoulder fracture, which requires a sling, physiotherapy and rest to re-attain the full movement range.
In adults, muscle tendons and ligaments are comparatively stronger when it comes to sports injuries, yet there are a whole host of other unrelated injuries or conditions that may affect sporting performance in later life. One particular condition is the enigmatic Frozen Shoulder Syndrome that strikes in middle age in the form of a stiff and painful shoulder. While there seems to be a lack of definitive answers for treatment of the condition, the causes of the condition are also unknown. Any link between shoulder sports injuries in adolescents and frozen shoulders in later life is subject to speculation alone.
