American Orthopaedic Society for Sports Medicine, July 11-14, 2013

The American Orthopaedic Society for Sports Medicine Annual Meeting

The annual meeting of the American Orthopaedic Society for Sports Medicine was held from June 11 to 14 in Chicago and attracted more than 1,500 participants from around the world, including sports medicine specialists, athletic trainers, physical therapists, and family physicians. The conference featured the latest advances in sports medicine, with presentations focusing on the identification, prevention, treatment, and rehabilitation of sports injuries.

In one study, Alfred Mansour, M.D., of the University of Texas-Houston Orthopedics, and colleagues found that National Football League players with syndesmosis ankle sprain who received a corticosteroid injection into the ankle in addition to standard rehabilitation returned to play, on average, 40 percent faster than players who did not receive an injection.

"Based on our data, a corticosteroid injection can be considered in the high-level, mid-season athlete with a stable syndesmosis ankle sprain in order to decrease time missed," said Mansour. "Future prospective studies are warranted looking at similar treatment of high-level athletes in different sports with similar injuries."

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In another study, Daryl Osbahr, M.D., of MedStar Union Memorial Hospital in Baltimore, and colleagues found that baseball players who underwent ulnar collateral ligament (UCL) reconstruction for UCL insufficiency during their baseball career could expect excellent long-term follow-up outcomes in relation to their baseball and post-baseball careers.

"Long-term follow-up of UCL reconstruction in baseball players indicates that most patients are satisfied, with few reports of persistent elbow pain and limitation of elbow function during activities of daily living. During their baseball career, most of these athletes are able to return to the same or higher level of competition in less than one year, with acceptable career longevity and retirement typically for reasons other than the elbow," said Osbahr. "Regardless of the elbow history, a concomitant history of shoulder problems and/or surgery will most often result in retirement secondary to the shoulder. According to our standardized disability and outcome scale, patients also have excellent results in comparison to the general population after UCL reconstruction during daily, work, and sporting activities."

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Jake McClure, M.D., of the Carolinas Medical Center in Charlotte, N.C., and colleagues found that athletes with no history of concussion undergoing baseline ImPACT testing who slept less than seven hours the night prior to testing performed significantly more poorly on verbal memory, visual memory, and reaction time when compared to groups sleeping seven to nine hours and greater than nine hours. This group also experienced more symptoms overall, in addition to more symptoms for each of the four clusters: somatic, cognitive, emotional, and sleep.

"Patient variables, specifically age and gender, have been validated in the literature as modifiers of baseline concussion testing results. Having a firm understanding of the modifiers of baseline concussion test results aims to provide clinicians with the most accurate clinical picture at baseline," said McClure. "This becomes essential when evaluating concussed athletes where return to activities and return to competition decisions are, in part, based on the athlete's return to baseline. To minimize or potentially negate the effect of sleep on the results of neurocognitive testing, it seems reasonable for providers to encourage their patients to sleep the recommended duration (range eight to 10 hours) prior to undergoing baseline testing."

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Mark Paterno, Ph.D., P.T., of the Cincinnati Children's Hospital, and colleagues found that young, active patients who attempted to return to pivoting and cutting activities after anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) reconstruction were nearly six times more likely to suffer a second ACL injury than an individual who has no prior history of ACL injury.

"In addition, it appears these young athletes are most likely to suffer a second injury soon after they return to sports. Females may be up to two times more likely to injure their opposite (previously healthy) limb than actually re-tear the original ligament," said Paterno. "These findings underline the importance of (1) critically evaluating an athlete's readiness to return to pivoting and cutting sport before we release them to full activity; (2) the need to develop more objective return-to-sports criteria; and (3) the need to develop more efficacious interventions to mitigate this risk prior to return to activity."

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AOSSM: Helmet Brand Not Tied to Concussion Risk in Football

MONDAY, July 15 (HealthDay News) -- Specific helmet brands and helmet age are not associated with the risk of a sports-related concussion (SRC) in high school football players, while the risk of SRC is lower for players who wear a generic mouth guard provided by their school instead of more expensive mouth guards, according to a study presented at the annual meeting of the American Orthopaedic Society for Sports Medicine, held from July 11 to 14 in Chicago.

Abstract - Paper 27
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