Matthew, who grew 8 inches in one year, had Osgood-Slatter disease, a knee condition caused by rapid growth and overuse. It would take eight weeks of immobilizing his leg with a cast, plus weeks of physical therapy, for that knee to recover. Within a year, he would have to undergo the same ordeal for his other knee. Years ago, overuse injuries were rare in children. These overuse injuries do not come from pickup games where neither coaches nor parents are involved,'' says Dr. Michael J. Goldberg, a pediatric orthopedic surgeon and chairman of the department of orthopedics at New England Medical Center, in Boston.
Overuse injuries occur with repeated physical motions to perfect athletic skills.
In other words, they come from organized sports. Added to that is the fact that growing bones are not as strong as adult bones. The growth plates, which are at the ends of the long bones, are often weaker than the ligaments that connect bones, and the nodules where the tendon attaches also have smaller growth plates beneath. Those plates are vulnerable, too. Girls can grow as much as 10 inches and boys a foot during this period.