Children and sport

Physiotherapists play an important role in the safe and healthy participation of children in sport. Physiotherapists understand the differences between children and adults and can help parents and trainers organise age-appropriate participation. They are able to assess children’s physical and motor development and identify whether a sport is right for their age and experience. Physiotherapists are particularly skilled at identifying the signs of overtraining and can advise how to ensure that children are not put at risk. Some musculoskeletal problems may not be picked up until children are involved in organised sport as this puts them in different situations and allows direct comparison with the skills of their team mates.

A screening by a physiotherapist is useful for children involved in sport to identify issues like age appropriate skills, muscle imbalances that may occur due to rapid growth, or biomechanical predisposition to injury, and to outline a preventive program with strategies to avert injury. If your child plays organised sport it may be worth asking whether the club has organised a physio to perform an assessment of the team. A member of the APA Sports Physiotherapy Group would be ideal.