ACL Surgery & Rehab Experiences

[Ronbo]

I'm hoping that some of the readers here would be willing to share any ACL surgery and rehab success stories that they know of.

My daughter suffered a partial ACL tear recently in a high school scrimmage and is heading towards surgery in the next few weeks. I would love to learn from others' first-hand advice, do's and don'ts, success stories, etc. Although the surgery is now very routine, the rehab appears to be long and arduous. Some stories from kindred players or parents would be most appreciated.

Sorry to hear this. Best of luck in her recovery

I'm hoping that some of the readers here would be willing to share any ACL surgery and rehab success stories that they know of.

My daughter suffered a partial ACL tear recently in a high school scrimmage and is heading towards surgery in the next few weeks. I would love to learn from others' first-hand advice, do's and don'ts, success stories, etc. Although the surgery is now very routine, the rehab appears to be long and arduous. Some stories from kindred players or parents would be most appreciated.


Sorry to hear that best of luck to her in her recovery. I cringe everytime my daughter plays in a high school game.

I'm hoping that some of the readers here would be willing to share any ACL surgery and rehab success stories that they know of.

My daughter suffered a partial ACL tear recently in a high school scrimmage and is heading towards surgery in the next few weeks. I would love to learn from others' first-hand advice, do's and don'ts, success stories, etc. Although the surgery is now very routine, the rehab appears to be long and arduous. Some stories from kindred players or parents would be most appreciated.


Sorry to hear that best of luck to her in her recovery. I cringe everytime my daughter plays in a high school game.

I'm hoping that some of the readers here would be willing to share any ACL surgery and rehab success stories that they know of.

My daughter suffered a partial ACL tear recently in a high school scrimmage and is heading towards surgery in the next few weeks. I would love to learn from others' first-hand advice, do's and don'ts, success stories, etc. Although the surgery is now very routine, the rehab appears to be long and arduous. Some stories from kindred players or parents would be most appreciated.

Sorry to hear. Was it by contact? Did the team do preventive excercises ?

With the advances today the recovery is less than we've been hearing.

They can now replace with cadaver tissue which shortens the time. A CU player I know had surgery in late July and is actually walking and jogging in a straight line today. Needs to be straight as they dont want twists and turns. She expects to be back on the field end of next month.

Everyone is different however....take rehab seriously and slowly. Dont rush to come back especially for HS soccer.

Slightly off topic but are any teams implementing ACL prevention activities into their training?

Read "Warrior Girls" by Michael Sokolove about the risk to gain the rewards. http://www.michaelsokolove.com/

http://www.michaelsokolove.com/images/warriorgirlscov.jpg

How about we tabulate the injuries this fall?

With the advances today the recovery is less than we've been hearing.

They can now replace with cadaver tissue which shortens the time. A CU player I know had surgery in late July and is actually walking and jogging in a straight line today. Needs to be straight as they dont want twists and turns. She expects to be back on the field end of next month.

Everyone is different however....take rehab seriously and slowly. Dont rush to come back especially for HS soccer.

Cadaver tissue??? Ewwwwwww!

I'm hoping that some of the readers here would be willing to share any ACL surgery and rehab success stories that they know of.

My daughter suffered a partial ACL tear recently in a high school scrimmage and is heading towards surgery in the next few weeks. I would love to learn from others' first-hand advice, do's and don'ts, success stories, etc. Although the surgery is now very routine, the rehab appears to be long and arduous. Some stories from kindred players or parents would be most appreciated.


Sorry to hear that best of luck to her in her recovery. I cringe everytime my daughter plays in a high school game.

And she plays why?????????

Ronbo, please check your PM box.

I'm hoping that some of the readers here would be willing to share any ACL surgery and rehab success stories that they know of.

My daughter suffered a partial ACL tear recently in a high school scrimmage and is heading towards surgery in the next few weeks. I would love to learn from others' first-hand advice, do's and don'ts, success stories, etc. Although the surgery is now very routine, the rehab appears to be long and arduous. Some stories from kindred players or parents would be most appreciated.


Sorry to hear that best of luck to her in her recovery. I cringe everytime my daughter plays in a high school game.
And she plays why?????????


That's a question I keep asking myself.

My son tore his ACL last fall, had the surgery in Nov, was playing again in March and was playing in May without the brace. The keys are quad strength, a good doctor and be willing to work hard. Pre-surgery PT and workouts really help. Start them right away or the quad will shrink. Do the research but hamstring (hers or cadaver) is much better than patella from everything we found and less rehab.

My son tore his ACL last fall, had the surgery in Nov, was playing again in March and was playing in May without the brace. The keys are quad strength, a good doctor and be willing to work hard. Pre-surgery PT and workouts really help. Start them right away or the quad will shrink. Do the research but hamstring (hers or cadaver) is much better than patella from everything we found and less rehab.

I'm glad to hear your son is playing again. Question: does he still need PT-type exercises (such as using quad machines), or does he get enough of a workout from his soccer practices?

My son tore his ACL last fall, had the surgery in Nov, was playing again in March and was playing in May without the brace. The keys are quad strength, a good doctor and be willing to work hard. Pre-surgery PT and workouts really help. Start them right away or the quad will shrink. Do the research but hamstring (hers or cadaver) is much better than patella from everything we found and less rehab.

I'm glad to hear your son is playing again. Question: does he still need PT-type exercises (such as using quad machines), or does he get enough of a workout from his soccer practices?

He was going to PT when he started back but once he was cleared to play he didn't need any further PT. This fall his pre-season work outs were the same as before the injury.

[Mr. Mxyzptlk]

My son tore his ACL last fall, had the surgery in Nov, was playing again in March and was playing in May without the brace. The keys are quad strength, a good doctor and be willing to work hard. Pre-surgery PT and workouts really help. Start them right away or the quad will shrink. Do the research but hamstring (hers or cadaver) is much better than patella from everything we found and less rehab.

I'm glad to hear your son is playing again. Question: does he still need PT-type exercises (such as using quad machines), or does he get enough of a workout from his soccer practices?

He was going to PT when he started back but once he was cleared to play he didn't need any further PT. This fall his pre-season work outs were the same as before the injury.

Many thanks for the info.

I'm hoping that some of the readers here would be willing to share any ACL surgery and rehab success stories that they know of.

My daughter suffered a partial ACL tear recently in a high school scrimmage and is heading towards surgery in the next few weeks. I would love to learn from others' first-hand advice, do's and don'ts, success stories, etc. Although the surgery is now very routine, the rehab appears to be long and arduous. Some stories from kindred players or parents would be most appreciated.

Daughter's age? Contact or non-contact?

My son tore his ACL last fall, had the surgery in Nov, was playing again in March and was playing in May without the brace. The keys are quad strength, a good doctor and be willing to work hard. Pre-surgery PT and workouts really help. Start them right away or the quad will shrink. Do the research but hamstring (hers or cadaver) is much better than patella from everything we found and less rehab.

Son's age? Contact or non-contact?

[teskicks]

My son tore his ACL in January, had a cadaver graft on March 20th and was cleared for full activity August 12th. That is just over 4.5 months. He worked hard on his PT with guidance for the training staff at his school.

A few key points:

- He is 18 and considered fully grown by his doctor, checked his growth plates before the surgery. If he had not stopped growing the surgery and recovery would have been different.

- He is a goalkeeper. The doctor told him if he were a field player he may not have been cleared as early.

- He is diabetic which had he potential to make the recovery period longer. He had to spend one night in the hospital which would not have happened otherwise.

His doctor's name is Haffenreffer who has an office in Needham (Needham Orthopedics).

Hope this helps.

My son tore his ACL last fall, had the surgery in Nov, was playing again in March and was playing in May without the brace. The keys are quad strength, a good doctor and be willing to work hard. Pre-surgery PT and workouts really help. Start them right away or the quad will shrink. Do the research but hamstring (hers or cadaver) is much better than patella from everything we found and less rehab.

Son's age? Contact or non-contact?
He is 15 (14 at the time) and it was contact in practice.

An inspiration for those who have suffered ACL injuries is Heather Mitts (center below), who according to the Boston Globe (http://www.boston.com/sports/articles/2 ... s_in_fold/ (http://www.boston.com/sports/articles/2008/09/17/first_breakers_mitts_lilly_hucles_in_fold/)) will be a member of the new Boston Breakers.

http://cache.boston.com/resize/bonzai-fba/Globe_Photo/2008/09/16/1221616951_3977/539w.jpg

Mitts tore an ACL in May 2007 but came back to win an Olympic gold medal with the U.S. team. She talks about her rehab in her blog, at http://www.heathermitts.com/blog.htm.

PS: To the right of Mitts is Angela Hucles, who will also be a Breaker next year.

[Ronbo]

Daughter's age? Contact or non-contact?

Daughter turns 16 next month. Injury was caused by contact during a scrimmage. She was sandwiched side & front going for a 50-50 ball.

Slightly off topic but are any teams implementing ACL prevention activities into their training?

Anyone?

Preventing injury (or reinjury) seems like a key component once rehab is over. In the Book "Warrior Girls" the point is made that for players who had suffered an ACL injury a lot of effort went into the rehab process but surprisingly little or no injury prevention training was done. Guess what happened? Many went on to suffer a second ACL injury.

Slightly off topic but are any teams implementing ACL prevention activities into their training?

Anyone?

Preventing injury (or reinjury) seems like a key component once rehab is over. In the Book "Warrior Girls" the point is made that for players who had suffered an ACL injury a lot of effort went into the rehab process but surprisingly little or no injury prevention training was done. Guess what happened? Many went on to suffer a second ACL injury.

Interesting point. I'd like to know if anyone has determined a reinjury rate. Does Sokolove cite any numbers or statistics? "Many" implies a large number, at least a quarter or a third.

Here is a link to an article on a significant ACL-prevention study:

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/14/health/nutrition/14exer.html?ref=science

Read it -- but more important, forward it to your daughter's coach. The kind of simple warmup recommended by the Santa Monica ACL Prevention Project (which has been discussed here in the past) has now been shown to reduce ACL injuries -- but it won't do your child any good if her coach doesn't use it, before every practice and game.

Here is a link to an article on a significant ACL-prevention study:

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/14/health/nutrition/14exer.html?ref=science

Read it -- but more important, forward it to your daughter's coach. The kind of simple warmup recommended by the Santa Monica ACL Prevention Project (which has been discussed here in the past) has now been shown to reduce ACL injuries -- but it won't do your child any good if her coach doesn't use it, before every practice and game.

Some teams already do.

Given the incidence and severity of ACL injuries, all girls' teams should do a Santa Monica PEP-style warmup before every practice and game. Parents ought to make sure that their daughters' high school and club coaches conduct such warmups.

Coaches, who are much more informed on injury prevention than most parents, should take the lead on this. Now that it's clear that proper warmups before every practice and game can significantly reduce the number of ACL injuries, coaches ought to adopt such warmup programs immediately. I don't see a good excuse for not doing so.

Meanwhile, the MIAA ought to strongly promote Santa Monica-style prevention programs. It should also start compiling the number of ACL injuries among high school soccer teams to understand the extent of the problem. Everything we know about ACL injuries in Mass. high school soccer is anecdotal, and then only because a star player was hurt or a rash of injuries occurred.

As for club soccer, we know next to nothing.

Save 75% on knee surgery in Mexico with certified doctors & hospitals
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Thanks, but no thanks. I'd rather pay the extra and come home alive.

Coaches, who are much more informed on injury prevention than most parents, should take the lead on this. Now that it's clear that proper warmups before every practice and game can significantly reduce the number of ACL injuries, coaches ought to adopt such warmup programs immediately. I don't see a good excuse for not doing so.

Meanwhile, the MIAA ought to strongly promote Santa Monica-style prevention programs. It should also start compiling the number of ACL injuries among high school soccer teams to understand the extent of the problem. Everything we know about ACL injuries in Mass. high school soccer is anecdotal, and then only because a star player was hurt or a rash of injuries occurred.

As for club soccer, we know next to nothing.

I searched the MIAA web site and didn't find any mention of ACL injuries. However, the organization does have a heavily promoted wellness program, and I did find a page for the MIAA's Sports Medicine Committee (http://www.miaa.net/sports-medicine-committee-page.htm).

The next meeting of this committee is on December 8. I urge concerned readers of this forum to contact the MIAA at miaa@miaa.net and request that the incidence and prevention of ACL injuries in girls' high school athletics be placed on the agenda of that meeting.

Coaches, who are much more informed on injury prevention than most parents, should take the lead on this. Now that it's clear that proper warmups before every practice and game can significantly reduce the number of ACL injuries, coaches ought to adopt such warmup programs immediately. I don't see a good excuse for not doing so.

Meanwhile, the MIAA ought to strongly promote Santa Monica-style prevention programs. It should also start compiling the number of ACL injuries among high school soccer teams to understand the extent of the problem. Everything we know about ACL injuries in Mass. high school soccer is anecdotal, and then only because a star player was hurt or a rash of injuries occurred.

As for club soccer, we know next to nothing.

I searched the MIAA web site and didn't find any mention of ACL injuries. However, the organization does have a heavily promoted wellness program, and I did find a page for the MIAA's Sports Medicine Committee (http://www.miaa.net/sports-medicine-committee-page.htm).

The next meeting of this committee is on December 8. I urge concerned readers of this forum to contact the MIAA at miaa@miaa.net and request that the incidence and prevention of ACL injuries in girls' high school athletics be placed on the agenda of that meeting.

This is just a reminder that you have a chance to help improve the safety of your children by encouraging the MIAA to promote ACL injury prevention. Send an E-mail to the MIAA's Sports Medicine Committee at miaa@miaa.net and ask it to start taking ACL injuries seriously, by encouraging proper warm-ups among high school coaches and collecting data on injury rates. There are serious, thoughtful people sitting on this committee, and I am sure they will consider your E-mails seriously. The committee's next meeting will be held on December 8.

This is not, by the way, just about preventing ACL injuries, worthy as that cause is. This is also about promoting proper training methods. We all have heard horror stories about the way high school coaches (and to be sure, club coaches) treat their teams in training and the injuries that result. The MIAA committee has an opportunity--and indeed a responsibility--to improve coaches' awareness and training methods.

I know there are many thoughtful and serious parents with soccer-playing children who read this forum every day. Now is your chance to help them stay healthy, simply by sending a brief E-mail to the MIAA. To make it easy, copy and paste the relevant posts on this thread, or just include the URL for this thread. People can make a difference if they speak up.

Warmups

Postby PB on Tue Nov 25, 2008 10:41 am
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oGepumV3ZZs

Thank you PB for the link, which I have moved to this thread. I recommend two more clips:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IDQh105oBBk
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t_yz7yWL ... re=related (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t_yz7yWLo5o&feature=related)


These short clips are about warmups designed to prevent ACL injuries. Clearly, the warmups shown will also help ward off any number of muscle pulls and ligament strains. But they must be used before every practice and game.

The MIAA's Sports Medicine Committee can prod high school soccer coaches to adopt such warmups. (I don't think high school coaches are worse than club coaches in this regard; indeed, I suspect they are much better. But the MIAA has no jurisdiction over club coaches.) The committee has a number of doctors, including a past president of the Massachusetts Medical Society. It prides itself on its activism, judging by this statement from one of its press releases:

The MIAA Sports Medicine Committee has a distinguished history of leading nationally in areas of student athlete safety.

The committee ought to live up to its distinguished history and take the lead on ACL-injury prevention. To readers who wish to help the committee do so (its next meeting is on December 8), I suggest sending an Email to miaa@miaa.net. It can be as simple as putting something like "MIAA Sports Medicine Committee and ACL injuries" on the subject line and pasting the URL of this thread (viewtopic.php?f=33&t=19050&st=0&sk=t&sd=a (http://www.talking-soccer.com/ts3/viewtopic.php?f=33&t=19050&st=0&sk=t&sd=a)) in the body of the message, along with "Please read this forum."

A Web page for the MIAA's Sports Medicine Committee is at http://www.miaa.net/sports-medicine-committee-page.htm.

Keep in mind that ACL injuries are not an issue only for soccer players. It's also a huge deal for other sports, especially basketball. The MIAA should take the lead on this.

How many clubs have instituted a Santa Monica type injury prevention program? How many coaches have been trained in the proper method of using the program?

It's my understanding that the players have to be monitored for proper technique in order for the program to be effective. You can't just give the team a set of drills to go through.

From the Santa Monica Orthopaedic and Sports Medicine Group website:

Most program exercises and drills are already part of a team's standard training. However, it will require attention to detail on the part of players, coaches and trainers. Optimally the program should be performed at least 2-3 times per week during the season.

The exercises don't have to be done before every practice and game, it turns out. At any rate, the MIAA's Sports Medicine Committee ought to put ACL injury prevention on its agenda. Even if it turns out the PEP program (or something like it) isn't feasible for wide adoption, the committee ought to be studying it. Even if the committee ultimately does no more than promote the importance of adequate warmups and warmdowns, that would still be a positive result. Reducing injuries of all kinds is a worthy goal. Moreover, tracking the incidence of ACL injuries among high school athletes is also a worthy goal.

Nicely said!

Thank you!

Incidentally, one thing I'd like to know is which surface is more conducive to an ACL injury, artificial turf (third generation) or grass? Surprisingly to me, at least one study suggests the answer may be grass.

Sorry to beat on this topic again, but this will be my last post for the day. I'm aware that because an ACL tear is such a dreaded injury, the risk of incurring one could be overhyped. (And we don't want to make our kids afraid of sports.) But making that risk even smaller seems nevertheless a good thing to do, and if in the process other leg injuries are also reduced, that seems a good thing too.

There are many articles on ACL injuries on the Web, but I thought a recent one from the U.K.'s Guardian was particularly interesting (http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/ ... s-injuries (http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/2008/oct/26/women-sports-injuries)). Here's a key excerpt:

Dr Tim Hewett at the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine has been researching the issue for nearly 20 years and is used to the opposition. Hewett, who specialises in biophysics, began researching the high numbers of ACL injuries in women and girls after his sister Jenny tore her ACL playing basketball in the 1960s; decades later she still suffers from a swollen, unstable and osteoarthritic knee.

'When I started pushing this agenda in the late 1980s I got a lot of resistance. It puzzled me at first until I thought about the politics of it. The last thing people want to say is that women are unequal to men, or that we need to make women's bodies behave more like men's. We are telling girls to "bend it like Beckham" but their bodies are not built like Beckham's. I don't want to turn girls into boys, I just want to make them as prepared to play sport as they can be. The implications may not be politically correct. But they are a reality.'

Invited to share his research all over the world, Hewett says one of the few countries he has not been asked to visit is Britain. He puts it down to the position of women's sports in this country and others like it. 'I was invited to speak at Athletic Bilbao in Spain, another country where men's sports dominate, and their immediate reaction was, "Yeah, this is all fine, but what about the men?"

'How do you get this information across in a situation where women's sports are not as popular? It's a money and prestige thing, but this is a major health-disparity issue. We have to even up the playing field.'

There are also differences between US and British sporting cultures to consider. Many agree that in the US over-competitiveness and over-playing contribute to injury.

The problem of ACL tears is simple to address. Prevention programmes are easily incorporated into warm-up and cool-down sessions and can reduce injuries by up to 70 per cent, cutting the odds to the same level as those faced by boys and men. 'The biggest issue we face now,' Hewett says, 'is getting the information out to the public. We can do all the research in the world, but if we don't get the word out to coaches, parents and players, the interventions will be of no use.'

We can get the word out to parents and players. But let's face it, it's the coaches who run the show. They especially need to hear the word, ideally from the MIAA.

My son tore his ACL last fall, had the surgery in Nov, was playing again in March and was playing in May without the brace. The keys are quad strength, a good doctor and be willing to work hard. Pre-surgery PT and workouts really help. Start them right away or the quad will shrink. Do the research but hamstring (hers or cadaver) is much better than patella from everything we found and less rehab.

I tore my patellar tendon on 10/30 and had surgery on 11/6. Today marks 3 weeks more or less, and it will be the first time my knee gets bent past 45 degrees (which isn't much). I can also start quad isometrics today, which will be the first step toward getting out of an immobilizer. I was told to expect at least 6 months of rehab.

I'd like to remind readers that the MIAA's Sports Medicine Committee is scheduled to meet on Monday December 8 at 4:00. If you'd like the committee to put ACL-injury prevention on its agenda -- or anything else pertaining to the health and welfare of our soccer-playing sons and daughters -- send an E-mail to miaa@miaa.net.

This needs to be bumped up again. People really should be writing to MIAA on this one.

The Sports Committee of the Massachusetts Interscholastic Athletic Association prides itself on its “distinguished history of leading nationally in areas of student athlete safety.” But it seems to be lagging behind in the area of ACL injury prevention.

Not long ago I sent a E-mail to the MIAA’s Sports Committee, urging it to take up the issue of ACL injury prevention at one of its scheduled meetings. After all, the mission statement of the Sports Medicine committee reads in part, “This committee, through the MIAA, will work to educate its member constituency concerning sports medicine issues. The committee will proactively address health and safety issues of general concern to the MIAA membership.”

When I followed up my E-mail with a telephone call, I was told by a secretary that an ordinary person does not contact the MIAA directly, either by E-mail or telephone. You have to approach it through the athletic director or principal of your child’s school. Any communication that does not go through that channel is automatically disregarded, I was told. So much for my E-mail and telephone call. (I apologize, by the way, for having naively urged other readers to send E-mails to the MIAA about injury prevention.)

Perhaps I am wrong in assuming that because there has never been any mention of the topic anywhere on the MIAA’s Web site, the Sports Committee has not addressed the issue of ACL injury prevention yet. I hope I am wrong. After all, among the committee’s 24 members are at least 3 prominent orthopedic surgeons and a past president of the Massachusetts Medical Society. Two of those surgeons work on the North Shore, and they probably know that two of the area's (and the state’s) finest female soccer players suffered ACL injuries last year. They have surely performed many ACL reconstructions and don’t need me to tell them how important ACL injury prevention is.

Maybe I’ll try the Massachusetts Youth Soccer Association next--although the MIAA seemed like a good place to start, since ACL injuries predominantly affect high-school-age athletes. Will the MYSA read an E-mail or take a phone call from an ordinary person?

By the way, this morning I viewed a very informative PowerPoint presentation on youth soccer injury prevention, by Dr. Anthony Beutler of the Uniformed Services University. You can find this presentation on the MSYSA Web site--the Maryland State Youth Soccer Association, that is.

Your post might be a good letter to the editor of major newspapers in the Commonwealth. Perhaps that might get the attention of the MIAA.

Excellent idea about the letter to the editor.

Did you approach your AD? What was their response?

Your post might be a good letter to the editor of major newspapers in the Commonwealth. Perhaps that might get the attention of the MIAA.

You might want to also notice the sports editors too. I've seen some pretty interesting articles about the MIAA on the sports page of the local paper.

Excellent idea about the letter to the editor.

Did you approach your AD? What was their response?

No, and I haven't thought about doing so yet. Unfortunately I'm too busy to post much today--maybe this weekend.

My son tore his ACL last fall, had the surgery in Nov, was playing again in March and was playing in May without the brace. The keys are quad strength, a good doctor and be willing to work hard. Pre-surgery PT and workouts really help. Start them right away or the quad will shrink. Do the research but hamstring (hers or cadaver) is much better than patella from everything we found and less rehab.

I'm glad to hear your son is playing again. Question: does he still need PT-type exercises (such as using quad machines), or does he get enough of a workout from his soccer practices?

He was going to PT when he started back but once he was cleared to play he didn't need any further PT. This fall his pre-season work outs were the same as before the injury.


It's always tough coming back from ACL to get ready for another season. It's probably even more so for a HS Senior who is expected to be ready for college. Is anyone facing this challenge this year?

New Mexico and Michigan are leading the way in promoting awareness of ACL injuries and injury prevention, while Georgia gets an honorable mention.

And it doesn't take much to do so. Of all the state interscholastic athletic associations, only the three above even mention ACL injuries on their Web sites. Georgia rates an honorable mention because of a single short primer on ACL injuries, but prominent articles on the New Mexico and Michigan sites also promote injury prevention programs. (I may have missed one or two on other state Web sites, but if they were that hard to find -- like those in a couple of back issues of Connecticut's newsletter -- they're effectively not there.)

New Mexico's sports medicine committee even discussed the topic, according to posted minutes of a 2008 meeting. Take a look at this nice piece on New Mexico's site: http://www.nmact.org/files/Sports_Med_A ... Aug_07.pdf (http://www.nmact.org/files/Sports_Med_Article_Aug_07.pdf)

Every other state gets a dishonorable mention -- including Massachusetts, the self-proclaimed national leader in "areas of high student athlete safety." Too bad that doesn't include ACL injury prevention. If anybody reading this happens to know one of the MIAA's sports committee members (a list is here: http://www.miaa.net/sports-medicine-committee-page.htm), consider calling him or her and asking why Massachusetts isn't even following in this area, let alone leading.

Don't bother calling the MIAA directly, though. Unless you're a school AD or principal, you won't get the time of day.

And what the heck, if you have the guts, why not put the questions directly to your child's coach: what are you doing to help my child avoid an ACL injury? Are the players doing a slow warmup and stretch before every practice, not just on game day? Are they being taught any PEP-style exercises? Have you read Michael Sokolove's Warrior Girls?

It's just a thought.

Oops. In my previous message I wrote that the MIAA was supposedly a leader in "areas of high student athlete safety." Better delete that "high." (Where are the emoticons when you need one? ;-) )

New Mexico and Michigan are leading the way in promoting awareness of ACL injuries and injury prevention, while Georgia gets an honorable mention.

And it doesn't take much to do so. Of all the state interscholastic athletic associations, only the three above even mention ACL injuries on their Web sites. Georgia rates an honorable mention because of a single short primer on ACL injuries, but prominent articles on the New Mexico and Michigan sites also promote injury prevention programs. (I may have missed one or two on other state Web sites, but if they were that hard to find -- like those in a couple of back issues of Connecticut's newsletter -- they're effectively not there.)

New Mexico's sports medicine committee even discussed the topic, according to posted minutes of a 2008 meeting. Take a look at this nice piece on New Mexico's site: http://www.nmact.org/files/Sports_Med_A ... Aug_07.pdf (http://www.nmact.org/files/Sports_Med_Article_Aug_07.pdf)

Every other state gets a dishonorable mention -- including Massachusetts, the self-proclaimed national leader in "areas of high student athlete safety." Too bad that doesn't include ACL injury prevention. If anybody reading this happens to know one of the MIAA's sports committee members (a list is here: http://www.miaa.net/sports-medicine-committee-page.htm), consider calling him or her and asking why Massachusetts isn't even following in this area, let alone leading.

Don't bother calling the MIAA directly, though. Unless you're a school AD or principal, you won't get the time of day.

And what the heck, if you have the guts, why not put the questions directly to your child's coach: what are you doing to help my child avoid an ACL injury? Are the players doing a slow warmup and stretch before every practice, not just on game day? Are they being taught any PEP-style exercises? Have you read Michael Sokolove's Warrior Girls?

It's just a thought.

I should add that California's association deserves mention for its excellent online sports medicine handbook, which has a section on injury management and on-the-field knee and leg injury assessment. But it doesn't mention ACL injuries, unfortunately. Nobody does, except New Mexico, Michigan, and Georgia.

[Unregistered]

The Sports Medicine committee of the Massachusetts Interscholastic Athletic Association (MIAA) includes the following 9 doctors:

Dr. Alan Ashare is described by Massachusetts Hockey On-Line as “one of the nation's foremost experts in the prevention of sports-related injuries.”

Dr. Mahlon Bradley is an orthopedic surgeon who runs High Performance Sports Medicine in Beverly.

Dr. John Duff is an orthopedic surgeon, described as “a leading authority on the prevention and treatment of sports injuries.”

Dr. Paul Epstein is a dentist.

Dr. Gary Peters is an orthopedic surgeon.

Dr. John Richmond is an orthopedic surgeon.

Dr. Barbara Rockett is a surgeon and past president of the Massachusetts Medical Society.

Dr. Joel Saperstein is an orthopedic surgeon.

Dr. Paul Vinger is an ophthalmologist who has helped the MIAA study eye injuries.

The committee's Web site also lists Robert McQuade as a doctor, but he may be instead a physician assistant certified.

The committee also has four athletic trainers: Tonya Hautala of Marlborough, Janet Kennedy of Framingham, Jeff Stone of Ashland, and Chris Brown of Wayland.

Imagine how many knee ligament injuries, ACL or otherwise, these people have diagnosed and treated. Collectively, the surgeons have repaired hundreds and perhaps thousands of ACLs.

Yet these experienced medical professionals apparently haven’t used their positions on the MIAA’s Sports Medicine committee to advance the cause of leg-injury prevention, as committees have done in New Mexico and Michigan.

It may be because the incidence of ACL injuries is small--although I doubt whether the MIAA knows what it is among Massachusetts high school athletes. But the ACL is not the only serious leg injury that athletes, including soccer players, suffer.

(The NCAA reports that the incidence of ACL injuries in women's collegiate soccer is indeed small and has been stable in recent years, despite increasing participation. But it also speculates that injury prevention programs may be the reason why. Also, developing teen-age girls, most of whom will not play college soccer, are especially vulnerable to injury, and they certainly don’t have the coaching and training resources available to college players.)

If readers of this forum know any of these doctors or trainers, ask them why they apparently think preventing ACL and other leg injuries shouldn’t be a priority for the MIAA Sports Medicine committee.

[Unregistered]

The state of New York shows us the way. From the University of Rochester Medical Center Web site:


Wednesday, February 04, 2009
ACL INJURY PREVENTION PROGRAM ROLLS OUT TO SECTION V HIGH SCHOOLS

The nation’s first – and only – program aimed at taking a community prevention approach to decrease non-contact anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) tears among female high school athletes is being expanded to all Section V high schools in the region. The program, called PEP (Prevent injury, Enhance Performance), targets the prevention of one of the most serious knee injuries that can sideline athletic careers among females, who are at six to nine times greater risk than males to sustain an ACL tear.

Organized by University Sports Medicine (USM), the PEP program is being rolled out to 119 high schools in Section V, an area that covers all Monroe, Ontario, Seneca, Livingston, Allegany, Steuben and Wayne counties. The expansion, made possible by a $161,000 grant from the Greater Rochester Health Foundation (GRHF), will cover junior varsity and varsity female athletes playing soccer, volleyball and basketball – the three main sports with high incidences of ACL tears. USM officials expect to train about 11,180 athletes on nearly 700 teams during the two-year program.

GRHF provided the seed money for USM to introduce the program to Monroe County high school athletes in January 2007. Since that time, USM athletic trainers have worked with 1,137 female athletes on 71 teams, and preliminary results are promising.

“We would typically expect to see about two ACL tears per 100 participants, or about 58 non-contact ACL tears for the 2,900 athletes we have been working with,” Michael Maloney, M.D., director of USM, said. “To date, we’ve seen only 10 non-contact ACL tears, so this data is very promising. I’m grateful that with additional funding from the Greater Rochester Health Foundation, we are able to significantly expand the reach of our program, and help even more female athletes stay in the game and attain their goals, whatever they may be.” (http://www.urmc.rochester.edu/PR/news/story.cfm?id=2370)


Why can't we have programs like this? MIAA, are you out there?

[Unregistered]

I thought one reason why the MIAA is silent on the issue of knee injury prevention might be the complacency of its leadership. And so it might seem, based on this June 2008 article from the Worcester Telegram & Gazette:



Monday, June 23, 2008
TOP ADMINISTRATORS WITH MIAA A LONG TIME
By Rich Garven TELEGRAM & GAZETTE STAFF
rgarven@telegram.com

FRANKLIN — Superintendents, principals, athletic directors, coaches and athletes come and go, but top administrators at the Massachusetts Interscholastic Athletic Association have found themselves a home.

Richard Neal has been with the nonprofit organization since its inception in 1978 and has held the position of executive director since Year 2. William Gaine, now the deputy director, has been on board since 1979 and assistant director Sherry Bryant since 1991.

...

Today’s workplace is a transient one, but the MIAA seems immune to those forces. As far as Mr. Neal is concerned, it’s as simple as liking your job.

“We’re doing more things for kids than could have been envisioned, and we’re going to do more next year than we did this year,” Mr. Neal, 63, said. “So that’s what keeps me going. I mentioned to the finance personnel committee (last month) that I would like to continue, but asked them if they felt that it was time for change and if so I perfectly well understood.

“I still feel I have the energy I had years ago, the enthusiasm, and they encouraged me to continue. I have no reason not to. I’m healthy.”

Mr. Neal said he graduated from Marian High School in Framingham in 1961 — at the age of 16 — and then earned a general studies degree from Providence College. He also has a master’s in education from Framingham State College.

Mr. Neal spent 11 years at Pope John High School in Everett working as a teacher, coach and athletic director before joining the MIAA. In both instances, he said he was all but ordered to apply for the positions, first by a teacher of his and then by a colleague, because of “the opportunity to give back.”

In fiscal year 2007, the last year this nonprofit organization’s financial statements are available for public viewing, Mr. Neal earned $138,822 from the MIAA and $15,425 from the Massachusetts Secondary School Administrators’ Association, a sister organization for principals. In addition, he received about $21,400 in employee benefits.

For approximately the last 12 years, Mr. Neal and Mr. Gaine have been provided with company cars. They each drive a 2006 Mercury Grand Marquis. Mr. Neal said his is parked at his Franklin residence when he isn’t working and currently has 60,000-plus miles on it.

“The board (of directors) felt we would be doing a lot of traveling for the association,” Mr. Neal said, “and it would be good for us to have cars, as many school superintendents have in their district.”

Meanwhile, Mr. Gaine made $120,079 from the MIAA for a 40-hour workweek and $18,411 from the MSSAA and Ms. Bryant $73,644 from the MIAA for a 36-hour workweek and $18,411 from the MSSAA. Ms. Anderson was listed as earning $57,355 from both the MIAA and the MSSAA, the former based on a 22-hour workweek. The trio received a combined $60,000 in benefits.

Paul Gilligan, an employee with the accounting firm of Stowe & Degon in Westboro reviewed various MIAA financial statements for the last three years at the request of the Telegram & Gazette. His analysis: While those salaries may seem eye-catching, they shouldn’t raise an eyebrow.

“The compensation doesn’t look out of line for people who have been there that long and I assume have contributed to the building of the organization,” Mr. Gilligan said. “I don’t think the compensation looks that unreasonable were you to look at other charitable organizations throughout the state based upon what I’ve seen.”



BUT IN FACT, the article goes on to suggest where the real problem lies:



Mr. Neal oversees the day-to-day operations here at the organization’s headquarters and his name regularly finds its way into media accounts. Because of that, public perception is Mr. Neal runs the MIAA.

That’s a notion disputed by him and by some directors. Five directors interviewed for this story unanimously agree Mr. Neal, as CEO, doesn’t plot the course, he follows it.

“Ultimately, Dick takes his action based on the board,” said Sean Gilrein, superintendent of the Dudley-Charlton Regional School District

“I can tell you clearly — the meetings are not run by Dick Neal,” said Mary Carlson, the superintendent of Marlboro schools and principal at Marlboro High School.

“The board doesn’t need me to lead it — it’s comprised of leaders,” Mr. Neal said. “As boards change, I see my role changing. But I am very conscious of a couple of things and one is we work for our school leaders and not the other way around. I take my direction from them.”



SO HERE, THEN, are the people who really call the shots at the MIAA:

MIAA BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Mr. James Peters, President (Monson High School Principal)
Mr. Barry Haley, Vice President (Concord-Carlisle High School Athletic Director)
Ms. Donna Brickley (Notre Dame Academy [Hingham] Athletic Director)
Mr. John Brucato (Milford High School Principal)
Dr. Keith Crowley (Xaverian Bros. [Westwood] Assistant Principal)
Ms. Roberta Doering (Agawam School Committee Member)
Mr. Sean Gilrein (Dudley-Charlton Regional School District Superintendent)
Mr. David King (Athol High School Athletic Director)
Mr. Karl Lord (Tri-County Reg. Voc. Tech. [Franklin] School Committee)
Mrs. Ruth Lynch (Pembroke High School Principal)
Mr. Charles Lyons (Shawsheen Valley Tech. High School Superintendent)
Mr. Brian McCann (Case High School [Swansea] Principal
Mr. Leslie Murray (Amesbury High School Principal
Mr. Robert Norton (Woburn High School Principal)
Mr. Timothy Payne (Mt. Greylock Regional High School [Williamstown] Principal)
Mr. Michael Rubin (East Boston High School Principal)
Mr. Stephen Sangster (Rockland High School Principal)
Ms. Marilyn Slattery (Malden High School Assistant Principal)
Mr. Michael Sullivan (Lowell Catholic High School Athletic Director
Mr. Francis Whitten (Algonquin Regional High School [Northborough] Athletic Director)


At least some of these people--at Notre Dame Academy, Amesbury, Woburn, and Rockland, for instance--might know about high-profile ACL injuries in female athletes that occurred over the past few years in their school, league, or area. ALL of them ought to know about injury prevention programs.

This is a high school ATHLETIC association we're talking about, after all.

[Unregistered]

One more thought: The MIAA deserves criticism for doing nothing about knee and leg injury prevention, and I've been criticizing it. But the people who could and should be doing something about it, right now, are the coaches, whether high school or club. In the end, they are the people who are in control of the players and the practice field.

[Unregistered]

The Sports Medicine committee of the Massachusetts Interscholastic Athletic Association (MIAA) includes the following 9 doctors:

Dr. Alan Ashare is described by Massachusetts Hockey On-Line as “one of the nation's foremost experts in the prevention of sports-related injuries.”

Dr. Mahlon Bradley is an orthopedic surgeon who runs High Performance Sports Medicine in Beverly.

Dr. John Duff is an orthopedic surgeon, described as “a leading authority on the prevention and treatment of sports injuries.”

Dr. Paul Epstein is a dentist.

Dr. Gary Peters is an orthopedic surgeon.

Dr. John Richmond is an orthopedic surgeon.

Dr. Barbara Rockett is a surgeon and past president of the Massachusetts Medical Society.

Dr. Joel Saperstein is an orthopedic surgeon.

Dr. Paul Vinger is an ophthalmologist who has helped the MIAA study eye injuries.

The committee's Web site also lists Robert McQuade as a doctor, but he may be instead a physician assistant certified.

The committee also has four athletic trainers: Tonya Hautala of Marlborough, Janet Kennedy of Framingham, Jeff Stone of Ashland, and Chris Brown of Wayland.

Imagine how many knee ligament injuries, ACL or otherwise, these people have diagnosed and treated. Collectively, the surgeons have repaired hundreds and perhaps thousands of ACLs.

Yet these experienced medical professionals apparently haven’t used their positions on the MIAA’s Sports Medicine committee to advance the cause of leg-injury prevention, as committees have done in New Mexico and Michigan.

It may be because the incidence of ACL injuries is small--although I doubt whether the MIAA knows what it is among Massachusetts high school athletes. But the ACL is not the only serious leg injury that athletes, including soccer players, suffer.

(The NCAA reports that the incidence of ACL injuries in women's collegiate soccer is indeed small and has been stable in recent years, despite increasing participation. But it also speculates that injury prevention programs may be the reason why. Also, developing teen-age girls, most of whom will not play college soccer, are especially vulnerable to injury, and they certainly don’t have the coaching and training resources available to college players.)

If readers of this forum know any of these doctors or trainers, ask them why they apparently think preventing ACL and other leg injuries shouldn’t be a priority for the MIAA Sports Medicine committee.

Dr. Mahlon Bradley has been one of the leaders in ACL injury prevention. His involement with US Figure Skating helped reduce the number of knee injuries in that sport, so it is odd that he hasn't been more influencial with the MIAA. I would think the other 4 orthopedic doctors should also be contributing too. Perhaps they are there in name only.

[Unregistered]

Take a look, report and recommended exercises
http://drop.io/aclinjuries

[Unregistered]

Dr. Mahlon Bradley has been one of the leaders in ACL injury prevention. His involement with US Figure Skating helped reduce the number of knee injuries in that sport, so it is odd that he hasn't been more influencial with the MIAA. I would think the other 4 orthopedic doctors should also be contributing too. Perhaps they are there in name only.

I think you just hit it on the head. Name only. Dr. Bradley was the owner of High Performance Sports when it was in Peabody and worked with MYSA as the Official Strength and Conditioning Partner for ODP. His staff did ACL prevention programs with the players and worked with a lot of the clubs and colleges on the north shore as well. Pretty good program and our involvement was very positive. One of the things HPS faced as an obstacle was location - easily an hour commute from Boston-south and anywhere past Waltham on 128. We tried to sign up again last summer and learned he had moved his practice to Beverly and no longer did the conditioning programs.

Is ggrevisited still on this forum? She was the Director of Programs for the 3 years we trained there. She may be able to give more insight on this.

[Unregistered]

The state of New York shows us the way. From the University of Rochester Medical Center Web site:


Wednesday, February 04, 2009
ACL INJURY PREVENTION PROGRAM ROLLS OUT TO SECTION V HIGH SCHOOLS

The nation’s first – and only – program aimed at taking a community prevention approach to decrease non-contact anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) tears among female high school athletes is being expanded to all Section V high schools in the region. The program, called PEP (Prevent injury, Enhance Performance), targets the prevention of one of the most serious knee injuries that can sideline athletic careers among females, who are at six to nine times greater risk than males to sustain an ACL tear.

Organized by University Sports Medicine (USM), the PEP program is being rolled out to 119 high schools in Section V, an area that covers all Monroe, Ontario, Seneca, Livingston, Allegany, Steuben and Wayne counties. The expansion, made possible by a $161,000 grant from the Greater Rochester Health Foundation (GRHF), will cover junior varsity and varsity female athletes playing soccer, volleyball and basketball – the three main sports with high incidences of ACL tears. USM officials expect to train about 11,180 athletes on nearly 700 teams during the two-year program.

GRHF provided the seed money for USM to introduce the program to Monroe County high school athletes in January 2007. Since that time, USM athletic trainers have worked with 1,137 female athletes on 71 teams, and preliminary results are promising.

“We would typically expect to see about two ACL tears per 100 participants, or about 58 non-contact ACL tears for the 2,900 athletes we have been working with,” Michael Maloney, M.D., director of USM, said. “To date, we’ve seen only 10 non-contact ACL tears, so this data is very promising. I’m grateful that with additional funding from the Greater Rochester Health Foundation, we are able to significantly expand the reach of our program, and help even more female athletes stay in the game and attain their goals, whatever they may be.” (http://www.urmc.rochester.edu/PR/news/story.cfm?id=2370)


Why can't we have programs like this? MIAA, are you out there?

I have to bump up this post again. The New York program is exactly what we have been advocating on this thread, and what I hope Massachusetts will study and emulate. If, that is, the MIAA is truly the leader in sports safety that it professes to be.

Thanks to the posters above about Dr. Mahlon Bradley; I think the "in name only" point may be right. After all, the sports medicine committee really has a distinguished group of orthopedic surgeons. John Richmond, for example, is the chairman of orthopedics at New England Baptist Hospital, a mecca for orthopedic surgery. He alone has reportedly conducted more than 5,000 ACL and rotator cuff reconstructions.

(Of course, there is also the possibility that these expert surgeons are simply more skeptical about the worth of ACL prevention than the lay public is, and see no reason to push for such a program. But as the poster above mentioned, Dr. Bradley himself has been involved with successful prevention programs.)

Thanks also to the poster who posted the links to the exercises and the paper published in the American Journal of Sports Medicine. That paper has been cited by the originator of the PEP program, the Santa Monica Orthopaedic and Sports Medicine Research Foundation, as evidence that a warm-up program can reduce the incidence of ACL injuries.

[Unregistered]

Good news: the National Athletic Trainers' Association and the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons are launching a public service campaign to promote ACL injury prevention. Who knows, maybe someone at the MIAA will see this ad and a light bulb, however dim, will finally go on:

http://www6.aaos.org/About/Pemr/PSA/2009/PressReady/PressReady_2009_NATATrophy-1.gif

[Unregistered]

Also, the New Orleans Times-Picayune reports that the newly created sports medicine committee of the Louisiana High School Athletic Association has ACL injury prevention on its docket. I look forward to the day when the Boston Globe reports that the MIAA sports medicine committee has ACL injury prevention on its agenda.

[Unregistered]

What are the various clubs in Mass doing in this area? Have any of the clubs instituted these programs?

[Unregistered]

What are the various clubs in Mass doing in this area? Have any of the clubs instituted these programs?

That's a great question; I don't know the answer. It also raises another question: How many clubs in this state have strong DOCs who can impose a uniform approach to training and warm-ups on all of a club's teams?

[Unregistered]

Can anyone recommend trainers in the Boston area who specialize in ACL injury prevention?

[Unregistered]

Can anyone recommend trainers in the Boston area who specialize in ACL injury prevention?

Sorry for bumping this, but does anyone know of such a trainer, or of a training facility that specifically addresses ACL injury prevention? Any recommendations are greatly appreciated!

[Unregistered]

Here's the PEP Program (Prevent Injury and Enhance Performance). Designed by the Santa Monica Orthopedic and Sports Medicine Group.

The web site http://www.aclprevent.com/pepprogram.htm

Here is a video link of the PEP program

http://www.orthopedicdoc.net/ACL%20Injury%20Prevention%20Program.htm

And PEP mentioned in US News and World Report article.

http://health.usnews.com/articles/health/healthday/2008/07/25/warm-up-reduces-acl-injury-in-female-soccer-players.html

Here's a FIFA warmup that combines F-Mark 11 and PEP.

http://www.fifa.com/aboutfifa/developing/releases/newsid=974799.html

[Unregistered]

The topic of kids and sports injuries made the NBC Nightly News the past two evenings. Last night's report focused on ACL injuries in girls. The reports are short but worth seeing; go to NBC's website (http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/3032619/) and under "Topics" click on "Health."

Wouldn't it be good if somebody at the MIAA saw those reports and decided it was finally time for the association to investigate ACL injury prevention? Isn't there one concerned high school coach, athletic director, or principal in the state of Massachusetts who will raise his or her voice on the subject?

[Unregistered]

My daughter tore her ACL in mid Jan (indoor game - un-neccesary contact), she had surgery 1 month ago & is currently in rehab. They used her hamstring to replace the ACL. She will be out of the immoblizer & off the crutches in about 2 weeks. Her team mate tore her ACL in Sept & was cleared w/o restrictions last week - 5-1/2 months after surgery. We have been told 6 months rehab.

I think its tougher on them menatlly than it is physically at times- she is 16 & is missing all Maple season, State cup, any other tournaments, Baystate games, summer soccer, not to mention high school track season. Realizing all that she would miss hit her very hard.

Seems the key is to keep them involved in their teams activities. Her coach has made her an assistant for the season & it seems to be helping her feel as though they havent forgotten her or moved on without her.

She knows she will be back - but its hard going from starting & playing every game to sitting & watching.

[Unregistered]

My daughter tore her ACL in mid Jan (indoor game - un-neccesary contact), she had surgery 1 month ago & is currently in rehab. They used her hamstring to replace the ACL. She will be out of the immoblizer & off the crutches in about 2 weeks. Her team mate tore her ACL in Sept & was cleared w/o restrictions last week - 5-1/2 months after surgery. We have been told 6 months rehab.

I think its tougher on them menatlly than it is physically at times- she is 16 & is missing all Maple season, State cup, any other tournaments, Baystate games, summer soccer, not to mention high school track season. Realizing all that she would miss hit her very hard.

Seems the key is to keep them involved in their teams activities. Her coach has made her an assistant for the season & it seems to be helping her feel as though they havent forgotten her or moved on without her.

She knows she will be back - but its hard going from starting & playing every game to sitting & watching.

Not to mention the psychological impact! Rarely are athletes ever the same, especially after knee injuries. Most likely will lose her aggressiveness and become quite a bit more apprehensive in her approach. Good luck to her!

[Unregistered]

Not to mention the psychological impact! Rarely are athletes ever the same, especially after knee injuries. Most likely will lose her aggressiveness and become quite a bit more apprehensive in her approach. Good luck to her!


They don't usually get that way until after the second injury.

[Unregistered]

Good news: the National Athletic Trainers' Association and the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons are launching a public service campaign to promote ACL injury prevention. Who knows, maybe someone at the MIAA will see this ad and a light bulb, however dim, will finally go on:

http://www6.aaos.org/About/Pemr/PSA/2009/PressReady/PressReady_2009_NATATrophy-1.gif

My daughter recently attended a Mass Youth Soccer summer camp where the kids were taught how to do dynamic warm-ups. Kudos to Mass Youth Soccer!

Meanwhile the MIAA web page is as silent as ever on the subject of ACL injuries. Yet I thought I had heard recently that some Mass HS coaches may receive training in ACL injury prevention through the MIAA. Did I hear correctly, or is this just wishful thinking?

Earlier this year Bob Hohler of the Globe did a nice series of articles on the state of athletics in Boston's public schools. The series was called "Failing Our Athletes." Wouldn't it be great if Mr. Hohler trained his investigative eye on the MIAA and ACL injury prevention? This thread would be a good starting point.

[Unregistered]

My daughter recently attended a Mass Youth Soccer summer camp where the kids were taught how to do dynamic warm-ups. Kudos to Mass Youth Soccer!

Meanwhile the MIAA web page is as silent as ever on the subject of ACL injuries. Yet I thought I had heard recently that some Mass HS coaches may receive training in ACL injury prevention through the MIAA. Did I hear correctly, or is this just wishful thinking?

Earlier this year Bob Hohler of the Globe did a nice series of articles on the state of athletics in Boston's public schools. The series was called "Failing Our Athletes." Wouldn't it be great if Mr. Hohler trained his investigative eye on the MIAA and ACL injury prevention? This thread would be a good starting point.

E-mail Mr. Hohler the link.