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For the past year, Dr. Peter Gabos, pediatric spine surgeon at Nemours/Alfred I. duPont Hospital for Children in Wilmington, Del., has been traveling to Belize City, Belize, with Spine Overseas. This nonprofit organization brings together healthcare, education, and technology in order to provide contemporary spine surgery and care in places where this care doesn’t currently exist. Through the generous support of multiple medical device and equipment companies, Spine Overseas has been able to bring state-of-the-art technology to Central America. “I joined Spine Overseas when adult spine surgeon [and Spine Overseas cofounder] Dr. John Williams told me they needed a pediatric surgeon to help kids with severe spinal deformities in Belize City,” says Dr. Gabos. “When I read their mission statement, I jumped at the opportunity.” Meeting a Friend for Life One child Dr. Gabos recently helped is 8-year-old Alex, who was previously diagnosed with asthma due to significant difficulty breathing. But […]

This fall, young athletes will line up on soccer fields with new cleats, uniforms, teammates, and coaches. But for many, fall isn’t the beginning of a season — it’s merely the continuation of playing youth soccer year-round. The sports epidemic of specializing in one sport too early (under the age of 12), has been widely publicized. However, these days it’s more than likely that you and your young athlete spent most of your summer at travel soccer tournaments, team camps, and soccer preseason. I know, I’ve been there with you. I’m a mother of four boys and a travel youth soccer coach for my 10-year-old. And I very often grapple with my reality of raising a soccer family and my professional responsibility as a pediatric sports medicine physical therapist. When I integrate my current daily life with my former life, as a collegiate soccer player, I totally understand the perspective of the […]

For over 100 years, allergists have used a method called “immunotherapy” to safely and successfully treat environmental allergies. Unlike medications, which only treat the symptoms of allergic reactions, immunotherapy actually teaches the immune system to become more tolerant of allergens. For allergic nasal and eye symptoms, asthma, and atopic dermatitis (eczema), immunotherapy is very helpful in the form of allergy shots. An oral form of immunotherapy (“oral immunotherapy,” or “OIT”) is available for certain types of allergies, and has been shown to be effective as well. How Does Oral Immunotherapy Work? The goal of oral immunotherapy is to make the immune system less reactive to a food allergen by eating small, gradually increasing amounts of the food over time. Researchers have been working for decades on a way to apply immunotherapy to the treatment of food allergies, with mixed results. However, a recent study in the Journal of Allergy and Clinical […]

As the seasons change, we all look forward to an exciting change of pace. With fall comes the bombarding of pumpkin spice, red and yellow hues, and, of course, — football. Remember when we could associate all seasons with specific sports? Fall — football and soccer. Winter — basketball and swimming. Spring — baseball and lacrosse. But more and more athletes are pursuing the opportunities that year-round sports specialization training provides. Long gone are the days of children playing a favorite sport for only a couple months a year. As parents invest more time and money into sports, the pressure to maximize their children’s opportunities for success is higher than ever. This often means dropping secondary sports at a younger age so that children can focus more on the sports at which they excel.  Parents and children may feel they’re expected to dedicate nine to 12 months out of the year […]

With the summer Olympics underway in Rio, thousands of eyes are turning to the TV to see athletes run, swim, jump, flip and more. Gymnastics is always a highlight of the games, putting a lot of pressure and attention on the U.S.A.’s team. As a former gymnast myself, I take a special interest in gymnastics. And as a pediatric sports medicine physical therapist, I find myself treating a lot of gymnasts for back pain. A lot of gymnasts who are injured turn to self-medication too, so I have learned a lot about that over the years. For example, CBD products (from websites like OrganicCBDNugs) are a popular option when it comes to treating pain at home. These products are known to suppress aches and pains, especially in large parts of the body such as your back. Many people do attend therapy, though. So this begs the question: How do Olympic […]

I don’t think anyone would deny all the benefits of kids playing sports: the social aspect, teamwork, building confidence, improving focus, overcoming obstacles — the list can go on and on. But there are some downsides, perhaps the most obvious being the myriad injuries kids can sustain. And recent studies show that ACL tears, one of the most serious types of knee injuries, are on the rise in athletes (specifically girls) 6–18 years old. With the school year about to start and kids gearing up for fall sports, let’s take a closer look at what causes ACL tears, the symptoms to look out for, and how these common injuries can be prevented. What is the ACL? The anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) is a rope-like band of tissue located in the center of the knee that helps keep the knee stable and from excessively rotating. It actually connects the knee to […]