Providing optimal care for active youth in Canada.

Sports are important activities for youth, with millions of children and adolescents participating in organized sports and recreational activities every year. Sports participation has many benefits but can also cause injuries, accounting for two-thirds of all injuries in Canadian adolescents and resulting in hundreds of thousands of medical visits annually. Despite the frequency of sport-related injuries in youth, many practising pediatricians are not comfortable managing these issues, citing lack of teaching and clinical exposure during training. Many studies have found deficits in musculoskeletal (MSK) and sport and exercise medicine (SEM) training in residency programs in North America, including Canadian pediatric residency programs. To address this learning gap, Canadian pediatric residency programs should incorporate more MSK/SEM training and clinical exposure to these issues. A standardized national curriculum in MSK/SEM will help ensure that community pediatricians practicing in Canada are adequately prepared to care for active youth.

Le sport est une activité importante pour les jeunes. Chaque année, des millions d'enfants et d'adolescents participent à des activités sportives et récréatives organisées. La pratique d'un sport présente de nombreux avantages, mais peut aussi provoquer des blessures. Celles-ci représentent les deux tiers de toutes les blessures chez les adolescents canadiens et entraînent des centaines de milliers de visites médicales chaque année. Malgré la fréquence des blessures liées au sport chez les jeunes, bien des pédiatres en exercice ne se sentent pas à l'aise de gérer ces problèmes, invoquant le manque d'enseignement et d'exposition clinique pendant leur formation. De nombreuses études ont révélé des lacunes dans la formation en médecine musculo-squelettique (MMS) et en médecine du sport et de l'exercice (MSE) dans les programmes de résidence en Amérique du Nord, y compris dans les programmes de résidence en pédiatrie au Canada. Pour combler ce déficit d'apprentissage, les programmes canadiens de résidence en pédiatrie devraient étoffer la formation en MMS/MSE et l'exposition clinique aux troubles de ce type. Un programme national standardisé en MMS/MSE contribuerait à préparer adéquatement les pédiatres communautaires au Canada à soigner les jeunes actifs.

Longitudinal changes of brain microstructure and function in nonconcussed female rugby players.

OBJECTIVE: To longitudinally assess brain microstructure and function in female varsity athletes participating in contact and noncontact sports. METHODS: Concussion-free female rugby players (n = 73) were compared to age-matched (ages 18-23) female swimmers and rowers (n = 31) during the in- and off-season. Diffusion and resting-state fMRI (rs-fMRI) measures were the primary outcomes. The Sports Concussion Assessment Tool and head impact accelerometers were used to monitor symptoms and impacts, respectively. RESULTS: We found cross-sectional (contact vs noncontact) and longitudinal (in- vs off-season) changes in white matter diffusion measures and rs-fMRI network connectivity in concussion-free contact athletes relative to noncontact athletes. In particular, mean, axial, and radial diffusivities were increased with decreased fractional anisotropy in multiple white matter tracts of contact athletes accompanied with default mode and visual network hyperconnectivity (p < 0.001). Longitudinal diffusion changes in the brainstem between the in- and off-season were observed for concussion-free contact athletes only, with progressive changes observed in a subset of athletes over multiple seasons. Axial diffusivity was significantly lower in the genu and splenium of the corpus callosum in those contact athletes with a history of concussion. CONCLUSIONS: Together, these findings demonstrate longitudinal changes in the microstructure and function of the brain in otherwise healthy, asymptomatic athletes participating in contact sport. Further research to understand the long-term brain health and biological implications of these changes is required, in particular to what extent these changes reflect compensatory, reparative, or degenerative processes.

Linked MRI signatures of the brain's acute and persistent response to concussion in female varsity rugby players.

Acute brain changes are expected after concussion, yet there is growing evidence of persistent abnormalities well beyond clinical recovery and clearance to return to play. Multiparametric MRI is a powerful approach to non-invasively study structure-function relationships in the brain, however it remains challenging to interpret the complex and heterogeneous cascade of brain changes that manifest after concussion. Emerging conjunctive, data-driven analysis approaches like linked independent component analysis can integrate structural and functional imaging data to produce linked components that describe the shared inter-subject variance across images. These linked components not only offer the potential of a more comprehensive understanding of the underlying neurobiology of concussion, but can also provide reliable information at the level of an individual athlete. In this study, we analyzed resting-state functional MRI (rs-fMRI) and diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) within a cohort of female varsity rugby players (n = 52) through the in- and off-season, including concussed athletes (n = 21) who were studied longitudinally at three days, three months and six months after a diagnosed concussion. Linked components representing co-varying white matter microstructure and functional network connectivity characterized (a) the brain's acute response to concussion and (b) persistent alterations beyond clinical recovery. Furthermore, we demonstrate that these long-term brain changes related to specific aspects of a concussion history and allowed us to monitor individual athletes before and longitudinally after a diagnosed concussion.

Reduced brain glutamine in female varsity rugby athletes after concussion and in non-concussed athletes after a season of play.

The purpose of this study was to use non-invasive proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS) and diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) to monitor changes in prefrontal white matter metabolite levels and tissue microstructure in female rugby players with and without concussion (ages 18-23, n = 64). Evaluations including clinical tests and 3 T MRI were performed at the beginning of a season (in-season) and followed up at the end of the season (off-season). Concussed athletes were additionally evaluated 24-72 hr (n = 14), three months (n = 11), and six months (n = 8) post-concussion. Reduced glutamine at 24-72 hr and three months post-concussion, and reduced glutamine/creatine at three months post-concussion were observed. In non-concussed athletes (n = 46) both glutamine and glutamine/creatine were lower in the off-season compared to in-season. Within the MRS voxel, an increase in fractional anisotropy (FA) and decrease in radial diffusivity (RD) were also observed in the non-concussed athletes, and correlated with changes in glutamine and glutamine/creatine. Decreases in glutamine and glutamine/creatine suggest reduced oxidative metabolism. Changes in FA and RD may indicate neuroinflammation or re-myelination. The observed changes did not correlate with clinical test scores suggesting these imaging metrics may be more sensitive to brain injury and could aid in assessing recovery of brain injury from concussion.

De Novo Cerebral Palsy Diagnosis in 9-Year-Old Soccer Player Presenting With Knee Pain.

A 9-year-old boy presented to our outpatient specialized sport and exercise medicine clinic complaining of a subacute onset of unilateral knee pain, after an increased level of soccer training. His knee examination was unremarkable. However, he demonstrated significant tenderness on palpation of his ipsilateral hip flexor and adductor tendons. Abnormalities in muscle tone and difficulty in relaxing and resisting the examiner properly were noted and lead to a complete neurological examination. It demonstrated multiple abnormalities such as increased tone and deep tendon reflexes, greater in lower than upper extremities, and abnormal patterning. A mild form of spastic diplegia was suspected and the patient was referred to a pediatric neurologist who confirmed our initial diagnosis. This case draws attention to the importance of maintaining a high level of suspicion for milder forms of diseases that can go unnoticed for years.