Can You Play Sports With Osgood Schlatter Disease & Coping Methods For It?

The number of young children participating in organized sports has grown to more than 30 million. It is accompanied by an increase in knee pain in young athletes. One particularly troubling condition, characterized by a painful lump in the patella tendon right below the kneecap, is known as osgood schlatter disease (OSD).

This is one of the most frequent conditions noticed in young athletes and soccer players. They are often noticed in the age groups of 13-17 years.

Your physician will raise doubts about your child’s previous condition and do a physical examination to discover if your child’s pain is triggered by Osgood-Schlatter condition or some other difficulty, such as an injury.

Osgood schlatter disease can be fairly distressing, although certain movements can assist improve symptoms. Doctors have trained children with this disease, and they worked with sports orthopedic doctors to develop a training plan for them.¹

There are often instances when play is required though you feel pain and discomfort, however, there is certain measure with which you can prevent things to further worsen. If your physician detected your knee ache as Osgood-Schlatter disease (OSD), you are not the only person. Osgood schlatter disease is widespread in dynamic, quickly growing teenagers usually between the ages of 7 and 14 for girls, and 9 and 14 for boys. It’s a short-term disease that often disappears between 2 months to 2 years. During its cycle, several therapies can aid you to cope.

Sports massage/myofascial techniques for the quadriceps muscles can help ensure they are strong enough to cope with the loads placed on them, as well as not being too tight. There are certain ways with which we can cope up with this condition. This involves

• Relative body strengthening exercises such as push-ups, chin-ups, bodyweight squats to build body strength
• Icing after a training session
• Focus on balance exercises for stabilization and muscular function.^4,5

Osgood-Schlatter disease describes a disorder arising during youth that produces pain, swelling and discomfort on a region of the upper shinbone, just below the knee, called the tibial tuberosity. The disease typically arises during the phase of adolescent growth spurt where the tibial tuberosity is susceptible to overdoing in an active youngster who is engaged in a lot of running and jumping events.

The symptoms involve:

• The typical symptoms of osgood schlatter disease include are pain or swelling below the knee after some extensive sports activity or injury
• Too much of stress or stretching can trigger pain to the thigh muscle
• Usually, one knee is affected however there are higher risks that both knees are affected
• The swelling on the tendon may be warm and tender.

The diagnosis and treatment of osgood schlatter disease are usually based on the history and clinical examinations as advised by the sports medicine physician. The treatment is primarily oriented towards rest and non-steroidal inflammatory drugs. These procedures eventually improve the flexibility of the thigh and hamstring muscles.

Early recognition and treatment can prevent severe inflammation. Referral to a sports medicine physician can perhaps offer the best opportunity for education, intervention, and monitoring for the young athlete. The kid should have a pain-free single leg squat before resuming to the regular sports activity.

The athlete may experience mild pain while performing sport-specific movements however this is very common. However, when the pain is persistent and causing limping during workouts, the individual should continue with the treatment and avoid doing sports activities. They should not return to the sports until/unless suggested by the sports medicine physician.^2,3

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Also Read:

• Are Knee Braces Of Any Help For Osgood-Schlatter?
• What is Osgood-Schlatter Disease, Know its Symptoms, Treatment
• How Long Does It Take For Osgood Schlatter To Go Away?
• Can Osgood Schlatter Cause Problems Later In Life & Does It Require Surgery?
• Does A Knee Brace Help Osgood Schlatter & Can You Squat When You Have It?