UPDATE: Return to Play in Sports

Dan Lorenz, DPT, PT, LAT, CSCS, USAW

The following is a summary from a recent article by Creighton et al in the Clinical Journal of Sports Medicine.  I would argue that a good portion of it is intuitive, but nonetheless, it certainly makes us think about how we go about deciding when an athlete is ready to return to sport.  If anything, it’s a good review of the things we should be thinking about when discharging/returning to play.  I couldn’t help but read this and think that it was somewhat idealistic as well because unfortunately, coaches, “the higher ups”, and parents put significant pressure on us to let people play and it’s often “our fault” if someone isn’t ready, regardless of the circumstances or severity of the injury.  I certainly am not immune to allowing an athlete to play before he/she was truly ready, but I think all of us would agree that we need to treat each on a case-by-case basis.

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Ankle Taping

Block Periodization Summary

MLKI

Shoulder Dislocations

Stingers

Tests for Detecting Bicep and Labral Lesions

Concussion Equipment