Blog

Offseason Programming for Shoulder & Elbow Strength: A Guide for Parents and Coaches of Youth Baseball Athletes

By: Dr. Lucas Glomb, PT, DPT, OCS When the baseball season ends, many athletes shift their focus away from structured training. But the offseason is exactly when smart, focused work can make the biggest difference — especially when it comes to shoulder and elbow health. The difference between in-season and off-season programming is substantial. During...

Treating Shoulder Pain in Youth Baseball Players – What is Little League Shoulder?

By: Lucas Glomb, PT, DPT, OCS Little League Shoulder, a common overuse injury among young baseball players, occurs when repetitive overhead motions place excessive stress on the shoulder joint. This condition can lead to pain, weakness, and decreased range of motion in the shoulder, hindering an athlete’s ability to throw effectively. This repetitive stress causes...

Arm Injuries in Throwers Throwing injuries among baseball players are on the rise with a 54% and 58% increase in disability and days missed, respectively, over a one year period.(5,6) Recent evidence suggests that up to 50% of professional pitchers and 47% of youth level players can expect an injury limiting their participation in baseball.(1,12)...

Early sport specialization where our youth athletes focus on a single sport year round has become more popular over the last decade. The 10,000 hours reference (original study in violinists not athletes) reinforced this concept despite the adverse events of early sports specialization include burnout, depression/anxiety, lower athletic performance, and sports injuries. Research into high...

In our previous blog posts we have written on the limitations of MRI for many injuries and conditions.  In general, these expensive tests have high rates of false positives where patients without pain often have positive results including ligament/labrum tears or tendon changes.  The incidence of false of positives increases in athletes with the majority...

Are Kettlebell Swings Helpful and Safe for Low Back Pain?

The majority of people with low back pain will demonstrate altered coordination and communication between the nervous system and muscles.  This leads to altered movement patterns which may perpetuate symptoms and lead to more chronic low back pain and muscle imbalances.  Primary movers for our movement patterns (example: glutes) may be substituted for weaker, less tolerant...

In previous blogs we have written on the recent research documenting the lack of differences between sham surgery and surgery for spinal and knee conditions.  For example, in the case of arthroscopic surgery for degenerative knee meniscal tears the evidence does not support its’ use due to its’ inability to perform better than sham knee...