Back to School: Preventing sports injuries

FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) -- As Valley schools get ready to open for the first day of class, many student-athletes are eager to get back into the swing of sports.

"You want to ease back in," said Dr. Anthony Yu. "You don't want to just step on the field and think 'I'm going to run a five-second 40 right off the bat.' That's a setup for injury."

Dr. Yu is an orthopedic sports medicine surgeon at Kaiser Permanente in Fresno.

He said high school athletes are in the higher risk population for injuries.

The type of injury depends on the sport.

Lower body injuries would include meniscus or anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) tears.

"Soccer seems to be the number-one sport for those types of injuries, followed closely by football. Basketball is not far behind that," Dr. Yu said.

Upper body injuries are caused by overhead movement.

"If you're a baseball player, volleyball, swimmer -- upper extremity injuries and shoulder injuries, that's what we usually see," he said.

According to Dr. Yu, many younger athletes come in with strains and sprains and need to rest.

He also advises older athletes to never play through injuries.

"If you decide to do that, you may end up costing yourself more time than you would have just by taking the rest initially," said Dr. Yu.

He recommends athletes take one to two days off a week, never skip stretching, eat right and stay hydrated.

"You want to train your body so that you are able to compete at the highest level, but you want to respect your body as well," Dr. Yu said.