Children’s Sport’s Injury Pain Management

81% of parents allow their children to play sports, and 9 out of 10 are concerned about the risk of injury.1*

You can’t stop injuries from happening, even when parents take precautions. Be ready when they turn to you. Recommend effective pain relief backed by decades of use.2,3

Counseling considerations for injury prevention

To help keep your patients from being sidelined by injury, remind parents to5,6:

  • Schedule a physical before the season starts
  • Give their child enough time to warm up and stretch
  • Ensure sports gear fits properly
  • Provide plenty of fluids before and during activities
  • Allow their child to rest at least 1-2 days a week

A comprehensive treatment plan for sports injuries7

The R.I.C.E. Method can help speed up healing.

Rest from regular activities and have the child keep weight off the injury

Ice the injured area for 20 minutes, 4-8 times

Compress the injured area with an elastic wrap, boot, or splint

Elevate the injured area above the heart

Top reasons children are seen in the ER for sports-related injuries

Strains & sprains 

451,000 each year

Fractures

249,000 each year

Contusions & abrasions

210,000 each year

Concussions

163,000 each year

 

*espnW/Aspen Institute Project Play Survey of Parents on youth sports issues reflects the answers of parents or guardians of children who are <18 (n=322). Data was collected via the ESPN Sports Poll in September 2014 (n=1,511). 

REFERENCES: 1. espnW/Aspen Institute Project Play. Survey of parents on youth sports issues. http://aspenprojectplay.org/sites/default/files/espnw-Aspen.pdf. Accessed January 31, 2017. 2. Lesko SM, Mitchell AA. An assessment of the safety of pediatric ibuprofen. A practitioner-based randomized clinical trial. JAMA. 1995;273(12):929-933. 3. Walson PD, Galletta G, Braden NJ, Alexander L. Ibuprofen, acetaminophen, and placebo treatment of febrile children. Clin Pharmacol Ther. 1989;46:9-17. 4. Safe Kids Worldwide. Game changers: stats, stories and what communities are doing to protect young athletes. https://www.safekids.org/sites/default/files/documents/ResearchReports/final_sports_study_2013.pdf. Published August 2013. Accessed May 12, 2017. 5. Safe Kids Worldwide. Sports safety tips. https://www.safekids.org/tip/sports-safety-tips. Accessed April 10, 2017. 6. Maffey LM, Emery C. Physiotherapist delivered preparticipation examination: rationale and evidence. N Am J Sports Phys Ther. 2006;1(4):176-186. 7. National Institutes of Health. National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases. Sports injuries: preventing musculoskeletal sports injuries in youth: a guide for parents. https://www.niams.nih.gov/health_info/sports_injuries/child_sports_injuries.asp. Accessed April 10, 2017. 8. Sullivan JE, Farrar HC, Section on Clinical Pharmacology and Therapeutics, and Committee on Drugs. Clinical report—fever and antipyretic use in children. Pediatrics. 2011;127(3):580-587. 9. Data on file. McNeil Consumer Healthcare: Fort Washington, PA; 2014.