Athletic Training
Rehabilitation Centers of Southern Maryland have been the sole provider of Athletic Trainers at the high schools in Charles County for the past 6 years. The Athletic Trainers are Nationally Certified and Licensed to practice in the State of Maryland. Athletic Trainers collaborate with physicians to provide preventative services, emergency care, clinical diagnosis, therapeutic intervention and rehabilitation of injuries and medical conditions.
Elite Athlete Performance Flyer
Parents and Student Athletes Letter
La Plata High School Athletics
If you have any question or concerns for your athletic trainer
Shelby Smith LAT, ATC
Common Health Issues
Concussion
A concussion is defined as a traumatic injury to the brain causing an immediate, and usually, short-lived change in mental status or an alteration of normal consciousness resulting from a fall, a violent blow to the head or body, or shaking of the head or body.
Position and Consensus Statements and other related links:
https://www.nata.org/sites/default/files/mgmtofsportrelatedconcussion.pdf
http://www.nrl.com/portals/nrl/RadEditor/Documents/ConcussioninSport.pdf
http://www.cdc.gov/headsup/pdfs/highschoolsports/parents_fact_sheet-a.pdf
Heat Illness
According to CDC, heat illness during practice to games is the number one death among U.S. high school athletes. There are several types of heat illness including: muscle cramps, heat syncope, heat exhaustion, heat stroke, and exertional hyponatremia. Charles County has a 5-day heat-acclimatization period. Other way to prevent heat illness is to consumer proper amounts of water and proper nutrition. There are football, soccer, field hockey and volleyball specific equipment restrictions that can be found on the Charles County Public School website under the athletics section.
Days 1-5: Teams limited to one practice per day not to exceed 3 hours in length and one walk -through per day no longer than 1 hour.
Days 6-15: Total practice and walk-through time per day is limited to 5 hours with no single session lasting longer than 3 hours. Team may participate in full contact will all protective gear.
Position and Consensus Statements and other related fields:
https://www.nata.org/sites/default/files/externalheatillnesses.pdf
https://www.nata.org/sites/default/files/hydration_heat_illness_handout.pdf
http://www.nfl.com/static/content/catch_all/nfl_generic_content/BTH-Preventing-Heat.pdf
Sudden Cardiac Death
According to CDC, nearly 300,000 sudden cardiac arrests occur outside of hospitals each year in the Unites States alone. Cardiac arrest is when the heart stops beating, suddenly and unexpectedly. Athletic Trainers’ are required to be Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) certified at the professional rescuer level. The Athletic Trainer will have an Automated External Defibrillator (AED) close by for their use as well as each venue has on present during events. Reminder, coaches must be CPR/AED certified as well. To prevent sudden cardiac arrest, athletes must be cleared by their physician as well as looking into possible family history of heart condition. More information can be found on Charles County Public School website under the athletics section.
Position and Consensus Statements and other related fields:
http://natajournals.org/doi/pdf/10.4085/1062-6050-47.1.96
http://natajournals.org/doi/pdf/10.4085/1062-6050-48.4.12
https://www.nata.org/sites/default/files/SCA.pdf
Common Injuries
Anterior Cruciate Ligament tears
Information sheet provided by the National Athletic Trainers’ Association
https://www.nata.org/sites/default/files/ACL%20Injury.pdf
“Shin Splints”
AKA Medial Tibial Stress Syndome, can be prevented by proper nutrition and stretching of the lower extremity.
Ankle Sprains
Defined as the stretching of ankle stability ligaments either medially or laterally. The severity defines the length of time for recovery. Athletic Trainer can provide exercises to prevent or rehabilitate ankle sprains.
“Knee Pain”
Very generalized knee pain can have many causes and diagnoses. Possible injuries can include but limited to: patellar tendinitis and “runners Knee” or IT Band Syndrome for overuse injuries. Traumatic Injuries can include but not limited to: ACL or PCL tear, meniscal tear, MCL or LCL sprain, and possible fracture. Most of these injuries might require further examination and imaging including: Xray, MRI, ultrasound, or CT scan.
