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Movement Science – Breaking Down Movements in Young Baseball Players

Movement Science – Breaking Down Movements in Young Baseball Players

by | Oct 27, 2023 | Sports Medicine

As part of SAFE (Sports-specific Assessment and Functional Evaluation), our team is developing sport-specific protocols for the use of motion capture technology in sports medicine that are being used across the country. There are only a handful of sports that have received attention in the motion capture world, and those are typically performance-based models. The models that our team are creating evaluate foundational movements to help us predict injuries and improve return to play protocols. To do this, we will need to record a great deal of data from a large number of athletes.

For the past two summers, our Movement Science Lab team in Frisco has collected data sets on our baseball program participants and some other volunteers. Though we are just getting started on the total number of athletes to test, we are making great progress on tweaking the protocol and looking at preliminary results to understand where to go next. Here are a few things that we are looking at in the study:

Trunk mobility – specifically in the thoracic spine. We’ve identified the best way to capture the mobility of the upper spine. We believe that tightness there may affect the stress on the shoulder during throwing.

 
Motion throughout the body while throwing. Because our movement science lab is spacious, with 14-camera motion capture system, we can monitor joint angles, speed and forces throughout the body during high velocity pitching. We believe some movements are directly related to the development of elbow and shoulder injuries, particularly when there is a high volume of throws without rest.

 
Single leg stability with motion. Most sports require movement of the legs, and most of the time, only one leg is in contact with the ground. We are measuring the differences from side to side and between athletes to identify asymmetry in static and dynamic single leg movements. We believe asymmetry is a factor for increased injury risk in all athletes.

 
Leader of the project and assistant director of the Movement Science Lab in Frisco, Sophia Ulman, Ph.D., says, “Early results from this study are helping us to establish an evidence-based return to play decision-making model.” Many have heard of functional testing or return to play testing for athletes returning to sport after a significant knee surgery, such as an ACL reconstruction. This new upper extremity program is much needed in the pediatric sports medicine community. As we continue to collect information about healthy athletes, we will use the results to continue to modify the upper extremity return to play program. This is an example of where our clinical teams of physicians, physician assistants and physical therapists collaborate with our research team to make changes that impact athletes today.

We are continuing to work on this baseball project and invite healthy young athletes to help us. We schedule testing dates periodically and would be happy to send you the calendar to sign up or work with your team to find a date to do testing together.

To learn more about Movement Science, please call 469-515-7160 or email MSL.Frisco@tsrh.org. 

Overuse Injuries in Pediatric Female Gymnasts

Overuse Injuries in Pediatric Female Gymnasts

by | Feb 9, 2022 | Sports Medicine

Overuse injuries can come in many forms and remain a concern for athletes of various sports.

Many recognize the risk of overuse injuries in the elbow in baseball players, but did you know gymnasts are at risk for elbow injuries as well? In our pediatric sports medicine practice, we see two unique conditions of overuse in gymnasts’ elbows. These conditions are triggered differently than in a throwing athlete. For gymnasts, these injuries are caused by compression when the arms are repeatedly in a weight-bearing position.

Recently published in The Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery, this study from our team described the different aspects between the following elbow conditions induced by repeated activity in a group of 58 competitive gymnasts seen in our practice.

What is capitellar osteochondritis dissecans (OCD)?
A rare, painful developmental bone and cartilage injury to the capitellum on the elbow end of the humerus, the upper arm bone.

What is a radial head stress fracture?
An even less common bone injury to the radial head, the elbow end of a forearm bone, caused by repeated compressive forces in the elbow.

“Even though these are rare conditions, we see them enough that we were able to look at a large group seen over five years in our practice,” study author Chuck W. Wyatt, M.S., CPNP, says,  Comparing multiple details of the images and characteristics of the gymnasts, including activity levels, the study found several key findings.

  • Both injuries present at a young age, 11.6 years on average in this group.
  • Radial head stress fracture may be more likely in a more acute (sudden) manner.
  • Likelihood of returning to competition seemed likelier with higher level of training and competition at the time of diagnosis.
  • Having capitellar OCD on both elbows was associated with the lowest rate of return. One in three returned to same or similar level of competition.

In our sports medicine practice, we will use this information to counsel gymnasts who present with these conditions and more importantly, continue to study and educate the gymnastics community about early recognition, treatment and prevention. “This population has so many unique characteristics to consider when it comes to injuries,” assistant chief of staff and lead author Philip L. Wilson, M.D., says. “We look forward to continuing to study to understand how growing and intense training affect their bones and long-term health, particularly in the elbow.”

This study, “Elbow Overuse Injuries in Pediatric Female Gymnastic Athletes” was published in a highly rated, peer-reviewed journal, The Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery. Authors include Scottish Rite for Children Sports Medicine medical staff and former research coordinators who have gone on to pursue post-graduate degrees in the field.

Read the full article here.

Learn more about Osteochondritis Dissecans (OCD) in the Elbow.