As youth sports increase in popularity, so do injuries

By Kay Quinn, Healthbeat Reporter

KSDK -- We hear a lot about the obesity epidemic among children.

However, there's another group of kids that have the potential for injury from being too active. Those growing numbers of sports injuries prompted a local doctor to create a new practice.

Youth soccer is one of the most popular sports in St. Louis and around the world. A report in the journal Pediatrics also found an increase in injuries as interest in the sport rises. Those rates are highest among young preteens. Knee and ankle injuries, as well as concussions, are most common.

Many of those injuries happen at after-school sports practice. That's what motivated a South County orthopedic surgeon, who is also the team doctor for CBC High School, to start an evening urgent care clinic just for orthopedic injuries.

"Is it a sprain, is it a break, and you just don't know, and then part of you is thinking, if I go to the ER its going to be three hours and we're going to be home at midnight," says Dr. Stephen Benz, an orthopedic surgeon who started Orthopedic Urgent Care Center.

He says an after-hours urgent care concept seemed to be a faster and less expensive alternative to taking a child to the emergency room.

"The ball hit it right here and popped this bone the wrong way like right here," says Justin Sanders, one of Dr. Benz's patients, who dislocated his thumb playing kickball in the backyard.

"My friend came over and he didn't think it was real, so he was like it's nothing and I showed him my thumb and he was like, 'ahh!'" says Justin.

Justin's mother Lisa knew the pediatrician's office was likely closed because it was almost 5 p.m. But she had taken Justin's twin to an urgent care center the week before.

"If you go to the ER you have a three or four hour wait and you're sitting around all the sick people," says Lisa Sanders of her past experiences with her injured children. "We've used the ER before for sutures and other injuries, but it was much nicer to come and get in and out."

Football, baseball and soccer account for many of the injuries among young athletes and doctors at Orthopedic Urgent Care say they most commonly see hurt ankles and wrists.

Keith Campbell is a youth soccer coach, parent and executive director of Orthopedic Urgent Care. He says injuries happen even under the best supervision.

"A lot of times it happens after school because they come home and the first thing they do is grab a glove or a ball and something happens inevitably outside, or soccer practice baseball practice gets over at 6:00 or 6:30 something happens," says Campbell.

The biggest question from parents: When to put an ice pack on an injury and when to rush in for expert help?

"If you have a child that's continually complaining of a lot of pain and discomfort you might as well bring them somewhere," says Dr. Benz. "If it's severe enough that it requires more than an urgent care has to offer, I'll send you straight away to the ER."

Justin missed four weeks of football because of the splint he wore to repair his kickball injury, but he was able to play for some of the last few weeks of the season. He's looking forward to his spring sport.

"We're starting baseball, so I'm sure he might be back," Lisa says with a smile.

The urgent care center cares for weekend warriors of all ages as well as young athletes.