Staying Safe In Sports As Youth Injuries Increase

With April here, the spring season is in full swing for many young baseball and softball players. 

As young athletes take the field, many parents might not know the number of sports injuries is on the rise.

Sixteen-year-old Ashton Bryce knows the importance of rest because down time is key to her performance on the softball diamond.

"What really motivated me is knowing that I was going to step on the field again," said Ashton.

She has recovered from three serious knee injuries that happened while she was playing ball.

"I had never had this happen to me. I had never had serious injuries and then this was back to back to back. It was definitely a tough time but it taught me a lot."

As North Texas children start their spring ball seasons, physical therapists at Children's Health Andrews Institute in Plano warn of a nationwide increase in the number of children who are injured playing their favorite sport.

"Sports are still supposed to be fun. They don't have be to the point of competition where these kids are running themselves into the ground and they can't recover properly," said Stephen LaPlante, team leader of sports rehabilitation at the Children's Health Andrews Institute.

Overuse injuries are said to be responsible for nearly half of all sports injuries to middle and high school students.

"We think it's really important that parents and coaches are educated in things like pitch count, not pitching more than 100 innings a year and making sure that we recognize signs of fatigue when their kids are playing, because we know athletes are 36 times more likely to be injured when they're fatigued," said LaPlante.

He said the most important thing a player can do is rest often, which is what Ashton tries to do.

"This sport has become everything to me and I knew if I could get past the first injury, then I can get past the third one with no problem."

According to the CDC, more than half of all sports injuries in children are preventable.