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Home › Articles › Health › A Real Pain in the Knee

A Real Pain in the Knee

Osgood-Schlatters in Young Athletes

By Kelly Burgess

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My daughter, Wende, had Osgood-Schlatters three years ago at the same time as her classmate, Kyle Edmiston. Our doctor recommended physical therapy, which Wende went to for six months. In the Edmistons' case, their insurance wouldn't cover physical therapy, so they just took their doctor's advice and treated the pain and swelling with ibuprofen and ice, and Kyle did extra stretching exercises before soccer. Today, Kyle still has occasional problems, whereas Wende is relatively pain free. Whether physical therapy can be credited for that or not, it certainly helped Wende manage her pain during softball season.

Terry Robinson says the most important aspect of physical therapy is the type of patient education, which may include the parent and coach. "It doesn't do any good to put the child in treatment and modify his sports routine if he's going to go home and sit on the floor with his legs crossed to play video games," says Robinson. "In addition to treatment, we make them aware of what other activities can impact the healing process."

As for braces, Dr. Bratt says that while they don't hurt, they don't really help either. "They're not prohibitively expensive, so if they want to try them it's OK, but there's no real evidence that they make it better," he says. "However, if it makes the child feel better, whether it's physical or psychological, by all means, have them wear one."

It's also a good idea for the child to protect his or her knees during sports by wearing a soft kneepad, such as the type worn in volleyball. This will protect the painful area from being hit by a blow from a ball, another child or a fall, which can make it worse.

In the end, the only real cure for the condition is time. All children will outgrow it, and the pain will go away as their tendons catch up to their bone growth.


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