new study on USA gymnastics injury

Judging from the coverage I’ve seen online, it’s getting responsible and balanced coverage. I’m pleasantly surprised.

It was featured on the Today Show (video). And here’s a clip posted by MediaSourceTV.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube:

Amanada Osswald is the gymnast interviewed who “balks” on back tumbling. (One comment said that her “error” was staged for the camera.)

Nationwide Children’s Hospital conducted the study. And they are calling for more guidelines. National standards. For better trained coaches.

Amen.

The US News and World Report On Medicine blog had the most interesting perspective that I read, written by an ex-gymnast Lindsay Lyon:

… I wasn’t exactly surprised by the latest findings on young gymnasts: Nearly 426,000 kids ages 6 to 17 were treated for gymnastics-related injuries in U.S. emergency rooms between 1990 and 2005, according to a study in April’s Pediatrics, an average of almost 27,000 bang-ups a year. Upper-extremity fractures and dislocations were most common among the younger set, while the 12-to-17-year-olds typically strained or sprained their lower limbs. …

Some suspect the number of injured is higher than this study suggests. “In my practice, gymnasts are the athletes that are most likely to put up with an injury for the longest time before they actually report it,” says pediatric orthopedic surgeon Angela Smith, a past president of the American College of Sports Medicine. …

Despite the danger, Smith is all for participation in gymnastics. “It provides young athletes with quickness, agility, poise, grace, and actual presence,” she says. Not to mention strength. “I think the benefits you can gain far outweigh the risks,” says Steve Penny, president of USA Gymnastics (the national governing body), whose 3-year-old triplets now practice.

…

For the concerned parent: Yes, there will be hand-wringing in the bleachers, and injuries will occur in the most careful of gyms. But there are several ways to increase your gymnast’s safety. Children should practice in a supervised environment with a trained coach or spotter—not at home …

I Was One of Those Gymnasts in the ER

original – flickr – foundphotoslj

I was tipped off to this story, by the way, by a brand new gymnastics blog, yet to be announced. The more, the better. Truly, I think everyone should have a blog.

UPDATE: Amy Van Deusen has more on this study on her About.com Gymnastics blog

UPDATE 2: The Today Show video clip was NOT balanced, I thought. But rather sensationalized. Too bad.