How athletes can reduce their risk of injury

Newswatch 16's Kerry Kearns spoke to a sports medicine specialist about how players can reduce their risk of injury.

WILLIAMSPORT, Pa. — High school football and soccer season is in full swing, but with all the touchdowns and tackles comes the risk of concussions and more.

“Knee injuries are particularly common in both sports. They require a lot of explosive evasive maneuvers, turns, stops, acceleration and braking,” says Dr. John Kunkel, a sports medicine specialist at UPMC Williamsport.

Dr. John Kunkel is a sports medicine physician at UPMC Williamsport.

He tells me that medial and anterior ligament (MCL) injuries and meniscus tears are common in football or soccer players: “Unfortunately, injuries are unavoidable as an athlete because as an athlete, we're always pushing our bodies a little bit harder. You know what's the next level we can go to? How much faster can we get? How much stronger can we get? And you're always on the edge of injury. So the best thing to do is look at that rather than saying, 'Hey, how can we avoid injury? How can we reduce our risk of injury?'”

Dr. Kunkel adds that the best way to reduce the risk of injury is to be prepared: “If you make sure your body is ready, and that starts with some offseason strength and conditioning training where you keep your body in shape, you prepare it for some of the exercises you'll need to do in the fall to get to two exercises a day, and that's how we can really reduce the risk of injury in those sports.”

And Dr. Kunkel says that when athletes get injured, they sometimes avoid getting checked out because they're afraid they'll be told they can't return to the field.

However, he adds that in such a situation, the best thing to do is to find a sports doctor who is knowledgeable about both medicine and sport: “We need to find out what the risk is when you return to sport. To do that, we need to understand the demands of your sport and, within that, the demands of the position in your sport.”

And to reduce your risk of injury throughout the season, it's crucial to find a sports medicine doctor to be part of your team.

“Play hard, have fun and if you get injured, come to us and we will help you come back safely,” said Dr. Kunkel.