2021 AOSSM-AANA Combined Annual Meeting Recordings-The Effect of Single Sport Specialization in Youth Sports: A Prospective Cohort Study

The Effect of Single Sport Specialization in Youth Sports: A Prospective Cohort Study

Video Transcription

Video Summary

The speaker, David Lee, a fourth-year medical student and former research fellow at the Rothman Institute, discusses the increase in youth specialization in sports and its impact on injury rates. The study looked at three high schools in southern New Jersey, following athletes throughout their high school careers. Out of 925 athletes, 26.8% specialized in a sport at some point, with ankle sprains and concussions being the most common injuries. The study found that specialized athletes were more likely to be male and report injuries, particularly in the zero to one week and two to four week categories. However, the timing and degree of specialization did not significantly impact injury rates longitudinally. The study acknowledges limitations such as missing data from outside providers and not controlling for competition level or off-season activity. The results are specific to the studied region and do not include sports academies or regional variations in sports participation.

Asset Caption

Donghoon Lee, MD

Keywords

youth specialization

sports

injury rates

ankle sprains

concussions