The CHOC Children’s Sports Medicine Program offers young athletes unrivaled services for their sports-related injuries—including care from board-certified physicians, with access to multidisciplinary specialists, state-of-the-art diagnostics, surgical techniques and on-site rehabilitation facilities.
Common Injuries and Conditions Treated:

• ACL injuries
• Meniscus tears
• Knee pain 
• Patellar instability
• Osgood-Schlatter disease
• Shoulder conditions related to pitching 
• Shoulder instability
• Cartilage injuries
• Fracture care
• Overuse injuries 

Specialized Expertise for Sports Injuries Unique to Children
When it comes to sports-related injuries, we know that children aren’t just small adults. In growing children and teens, injuries to bones, muscles, ligaments, tendons and joints are different than with adult patients.  Special training and experience in pediatric sports medicine allows our specialists to appropriately treat the unique sports-related medical needs of children and teens.

Our specialists work one-one-one with each patient to develop a unique diagnosis and treatment plan—with an emphasis on preserving future growth and function, and a safe return to play.

Treatment Options
Our orthopaedic surgeons take a conservative approach, utilizing nonoperative treatment options when appropriate. Traumatic injuries unique to children, like growth plate injuries and fractures, are treated with an emphasis on preserving future growth and function.

And when surgery is necessary, minimally invasive surgical techniques like arthroscopy—followed by rehabilitation and physical therapy—can minimize the length of recovery.

Rehabilitation
Pediatric-trained physical therapists provide modalities that address the unique challenges of sports-related injuries in children, while maximizing physical function, ability and coordination. Our specialized staff provides a wide range of rehabilitation services for young athletes, including exercise programs and occupational therapy with a focus on injury prevention.

Comprehensive Services for Young Athletes
Our orthopaedic specialists also work with a pediatric multidisciplinary team to screen for, and manage other sports-related conditions.

Concussion Management
Neuropsychologists with the CHOC Sports Performance Psychology program take a computer-based approach in the assessment, treatment and monitoring of sports-related concussions. Testing with ImPACT helps to track an individual’s recovery from concussion symptoms, measuring attention span, memory, processing speed and reaction time.

For more complicated concussions, including second impact, multiple concussions, and postconcussion syndrome, CHOC neuropsychologists are available to administer comprehensive neuropsychological evaluations to help determine the extent of neurocognitive dysfunction and recommend appropriate course of treatment. 

Sports Nutrition
The CHOC Sports Nutrition team provides athletes with specialized counseling - from basic nutrition to optimizing training capacity and athletic performance.  Our counselors can suggest appropriate food selection and timing of meals/snacks for strength training, exercise recovery, and delaying fatigue. 

They can also advise young athletes on dietary supplements, fluid and electrolyte drinks and sports bars and gels, as well as address nutrition challenges to performance such as dehydration, iron depletion and other nutrient deficiencies, and food allergies.

Sports Performance Psychology
Our sports psychologists help young athletes develop the mental skills necessary to perform consistently in training and competition, increase adherence to exercise programs, realize their athletic potential and identify specific behaviors and emotions that impede performance. Our experts can also offer coping strategies and facilitate adjustment when an injury affects ability to participate in sports or exercise activities.

Cardiac Screenings
Through the CHOC Children’s Heart Institute, pediatric cardiologists offer screening to identify congenital or acquired heart conditions that can impact sports performance and safety.  A visit with our specialists includes a complete and accurate family history and, if indicated, electrocardiogram (EKG). 

Exercise-induced Asthma
Frequently diagnosed in children, exercise-induced asthma occurs in about 15-20% of the general population. Our pediatric allergists thoroughly review the athlete’s health history and perform a physical exam that may include lung function testing with an exercise challenge. 

Our experts can then make treatment recommendations that may be as simple as properly warming-up before any sports activity. But in some cases, asthma needs to be managed with medication. Our physicians work with each patient, and his or her family, to develop a treatment plan that works for the athlete’s specific sport and lifestyle. 

The CHOC Children’s Sports Medicine Program offers the most treatment advanced options and comprehensive care in a compassionate environment. To learn more, or to make an appointment, please call (714) 289-4054.
 

To learn about sudden cardiac arrest and AED programs in schools for young athletes, click here.