Dr. Yamada, medical director of Saitama City Hospital Sports Medicine Center, explains shoulder and elbow pain.
Early detection is the key to shoulder and elbow pain. On the 18th, TURNING POINT, a program to improve baseball training skills, held a 5-night online event called “Pitching Instruction Week” for youth baseball players and coaches who have various concerns about how to pitch. Focusing on injury prevention for elementary and junior high school students, he introduced ways to easily check for “elbow pain” at home.
On the third day of the popular event, Dr. Tsuyoshi Yamada, medical director of Saitama City Hospital Sports Medicine Center, participated. Dr. Yamada also serves as vice president of the NPO Saitama Sports Medical Support, and continues to work to emphasize the importance of preventing injuries, such as actively conducting baseball elbow examinations.
Baseball elbow is one of the most feared injuries for players. Particular attention should be paid to children in elementary and junior high school whose bones have not yet fully grown. Dr. Yamada also said, “It’s one of the most famous injuries, and everyone has heard of it at least once.This means that there are many people who suffer from it.Especially in the United States, it is quantified, and it is quantified for ages 8 to 14. “74% of people experience pain, and 23% of them are clearly overused.”
Of course, overuse and fatigue are factors, but there are also other factors such as “the ball is fast,” “the body matures quickly,” and “the player is both a pitcher and a catcher.” Coaches also need to keep in mind that children are easily injured. Adults and children have different bone strengths, and elementary school students who have just started playing baseball often injure their cartilage. Children’s bones are weaker than their ligaments, so they can easily peel off, so care must be taken.
Protecting children by detecting baseball elbow early… Introducing easy check methods that can be done at home
Additionally, there are two affected areas of baseball elbow: the inside and outside of the elbow. Dr. Yamada points out that while it is easy to notice the pain on the inside due to bone separation, “on the outside it is difficult to notice, and when it is discovered, surgery may be necessary.” Therefore, at the event, we also introduced a “Baseball Elbow Check” that can be easily done at home.
To do this, touch the protrusion on the inside of your elbow in an arcing motion from above, or extend your elbow outwards to check for pain. What is important here is the children’s facial expressions. It is important to keep an eye on facial expressions such as grimacing and holding back, as they can sometimes hide pain.
Nationally, it is difficult to say that baseball elbow examinations and echo examinations are widespread. Dr. Yamada also said, “In the future, it will be necessary for the federation and medical institutions to work together to protect children.There are quite a few cases of ‘hidden baseball elbow,’ so I would like people to get tested even if they don’t have any pain.” He appealed to players, coaches, and parents.
Taga Youth Baseball Club manager Masato Tsuji also participated as a guest commentator on this day. Rakuten pitcher Kodai Norimoto (Rakuten) and a famous coach who trained more than 20 Koshien baseball players also said, “Our team also undergoes medical examinations twice a year. “It only takes about two minutes, so I want adults to take the initiative and protect the children.”
Of course, it is necessary to learn the correct way to throw and improve your skills, but if you break down, you will not be able to recover. It is also the role of coaches to reduce the number of baseball players who give up playing baseball due to shoulder and elbow pain. “Pitching Instruction Week” will be held until the 20th.
“Pitching Guidance Week” is being held until December 20th (Friday)…There are also missed broadcasts
Full-Count, First-Pitch and the baseball training skill improvement program “TURNING POINT” are holding an online event “Pitching Instruction Week” for five consecutive nights starting December 16th. For youth baseball coaches, parents, and players who want to improve their ball speed, improve their ball control, throw accurately, learn how to move their bodies without getting injured, etc., we provide guidance on how to throw. Here are some tips. Participation fee is free. There are also missed broadcasts. For details, see the page below.
[Pitching instruction week details]
[To participate, register for free at TURNING POINT]
(First-Pitch Editorial Department)
I want to increase the speed of the ball, I want to hit the ball farther… “First-Pitch,” a sibling site for “Full-Count,” tells baseball boys and girls, their coaches, and their parents about the coaching methods they want to know about, as well as the “current state” of the field. We will provide useful information every day as a gateway to learning the fun of baseball and as a clue to solving your questions.
