Expert talks sports injuries, how to prevent them this fall

STATE COLLEGE, Pa. (WTAJ) — Over 3.5 million athletes each year suffer from sports injuries, some resulting in season-ending or even career-ending damage.

Jason Clark, DO, FAAOS is an orthopedic surgeon at Penn Highlands State College who said that with any sport comes risk of injury ranging from strains and sprains to broken bones and severe concussions.

His advice — stretch and eat healthy to help avoid injury. But if while practicing or playing in a game an athlete feels that something is not right, they should let their training staff know.

“Some of the best ways to prevent those injuries would be to work with your athletic training staff. And if there’s anything you feel that’s awkward or uncomfortable, do not be afraid to bring it up to the training staff, to the medical staff,” Clark said.

While uncommon, life-threatening injuries can and do occur during athletic events. Clark said that while rare, staff on the field and court still train to treat them.

“When it does come up, you need to be prepared,” Clark said. “So when you’re talking about like having an AED or knowing your CPR training or knowing, you know, having emergency services available, such as ambulance services and having hospitals nearby who were prepared.”

As a former four-sport athlete who suffered from an ACL tear as a teenager himself, Clark said that an injury may leave an athlete on the sidelines for a few weeks, but an injury left untreated could put an athlete on the sidelines for a few seasons. While some student athletes may be afraid of sitting out of the game, Clark said it is important they not delay getting treatment.

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“We need to get on top of them when they happen so we can address them and treat these student athletes and not only to get them back into the game, but to get them ready for the game of life,” Clark said.

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