Could it be an ACL Tear?

Anterior Cruciate Ligament “ACL” TEARS

How can we reduce the risk?

WRITTEN BY

DR. ALISON SYNAKOWSKI, DPT

There is a lot of discussion and information these days about Anterior Cruciate Ligament (“ACL”) tears. In this article, we breakdown some of the key points to date about ACL tears...

The ACL is a ligament that connects the femur (thigh bone) to the tibia (shin bone) and helps to control movement of the tibia when there is a force pushing it forward or turning (such as changing direction or cutting). ACL injuries occur when the ligament is pushed beyond the end range. Many times, this results from direct contact (a hit to the knee), but, often, especially in females, it is a non-contact injury, meaning the injury results from how the individual moved their body and the force placed upon the knee, not contact with another individual. These injuries leave athletes side-lined for a year or more.

INCIDENCE OF ACL TEARS IN ATHLETES

• 3 in every 1000 athletes participating in contact sports per year • Females are at least 3x more likely to tear their ACL via NON-contact mechanisms • The greater the contact required in a sport the greater the risk of ACL tears • Basketball and soccer account for over 75% of ACL tears in female high school athletes • Football accounts for over 70% of ACL tears for male high school athletes

HOW CAN WE REDUCE RISK?

• Teach proper training technique on the court/field and in the weight room. Incorporate exercises that not only focus on the knees staying in line with the ankles (not caving in), but also teach athletes proper technique with cutting, changing direction and let them practice it over and over - just as they would practice dribbling or shooting. Focus should be on deceleration, planting and cutting, and landing of jumps. Do not over correct the athlete’s technique.

The body needs to learn how to do this itself - so more exposure to different scenarios becomes important. This is a major reason that playing multiple sports is highly recommended. • Implement a sound warm up that incorporates many of these training techniques on a regular basis. Think of this as the foundations for movement. In basketball, you need to learn to dribble, shoot, chest pass, bounce pass. For movement, you need to learn and be exposed frequently to how to plant, cut, decelerate, change direction, land. The FIFA 11+, the Warm-up for Injury Prevention Program (WIPP) or the PEP program are great, researched based programs that can be used as a starting point. Our warm ups should be purposeful and focused. Most ACL tears occur in the first quarter of a game, which can be mitigated with a proper warm up. • Be prepared. While this may seem like common sense - the implementation is not. Too many times athletes take time off (summer vacation!) and then, due to being young, can seemingly bounce back to playing their sport. But the time off has left the body underprepared. The body needs exposure to sprinting, cutting, changing direction, lifting weights, jumping, etc. frequently to know how to do these activities. Too often we are either “all in” or “off.” I like to refer to this as the “boom or bust” mentality. Rest is crucial and important - but active rest, as well as time spent doing other activities, is more important. • Be sure to rehab injuries fully. We will cover return to sport after an ACL tear in a future article, but even injuries such as ankle sprains, hamstring strains, etc. that we have not fully rehabbed, strengthened and tested can be a precursor to an ACL injury (or any injury!). We know now more than ever how to help reduce the risk of ACL tears. Now is the time to implement what we know. If you have questions as a coach, parent, or player, please reach out for further information and discussion. SF

WHEN GENEROSITY IS DANGEROUS

WRITTEN BY RICK COBELLO, PRESIDENT GLOBAL CYBERSECURITY SOLUTIONS

Recent events have shown us the devastation people can experience. The events in Ukraine, has given us an insight to how much people had and how much was lost. Basic human nature tugs us in the direction of… “How can I help?” Cyber Crooks are happy to help you, but let’s avoid that. The number of agencies formed from the situation in Ukraine have spawned a plethora of sites soliciting donations for the people of Ukraine. This is a good opportunity to review guidelines for giving, not just for the current situation but for charitable giving in general. There are a few simple guidelines to ensure your donation is safe and will go to the group that the agency serves.

1.

Use your favorite search engine (Google, BING etc.) If you search for “storm relief in Alabama,” look at all the links on the organization and look for complaints or misuse of money. Most people are quick to report illegitimate charities and what happened.

2.

Look at the specific web site and determine if the information presented provides details on the recipients of the donation. If not, call them. If the organization does not list a phone number, move on.

3.

There are specific organizations tracking charities, such as: • Charity Navigator • Charity Watch

4.

If it is a legitimate charity, it will be registered in the state of incorporation. In New York, the Attorney Generals’ website has a page to determine if a charity is registered.

5.

Carefully read their URL, make sure it has an S, indicating a SECURE site https://myfavoritecharity.com. The https lets you know the site is encrypted and your donation is generally safe. Do not use if it is just HTTP.

6.

If you are looking for a charitable tax deduction, Look up the organization in the IRS’s Tax Exempt Organization Search service on the IRS site. The second danger is phone calls.

Phone scams are rampant, and I am sure you have received a call from an organization who is soliciting for money over the phone, the best thing to do is hang up, but… If you do want to hear what they say: • Ask for the exact name and address of the organization. • Ask how much money will go to support the program? • Ask if this is a Political Action Committee. (They can hide behind fictitious names that seem legit, but the money is going to a PAC.) • Is this donation tax deductible? If yes, they should give you the information so you can verify.

A FEW TIPS TO KEEP YOU SAFE:

• Do not believe caller ID… They can spoof phone numbers. • If they rush you, leave the call. • Never give your credit card number unless this is an organization you regularly donate to, but even then, make sure. • Don’t pay with gift cards the caller asks you to purchase. • Most importantly… If it feels wrong, you are probably right! Use your new found understanding to help those organizations who help people in need, and practice safe cybersecurity to keep your giving safe. SF