Pediatric and adolescent injury in rock climbing

Incidence, Diagnosis, and Management of Injury in Sport Climbing and Bouldering: A Critical Review

“…Adolescent competitive climbers engage in structured training programs designed to improve performance but paradoxically places large amounts of stress on an immature skeleton. There are few studies on adolescent climbing populations, although initial data suggests an increase in epiphyseal fractures of the promixal interpahalangeal joint (2,11,19,20). A secondary analysis of adolescent climbing data found 50% (13/26) of all reported injuries were fractures of the growth plate (19).…”

“…There are few studies on adolescent climbing populations, although initial data suggests an increase in epiphyseal fractures of the promixal interpahalangeal joint (2,11,19,20). A secondary analysis of adolescent climbing data found 50% (13/26) of all reported injuries were fractures of the growth plate (19). A case series of 22 injuries found a higher proportion of growth plate fractures in adolescent male climbers (n=14) than adolescent female climbers (n=4) with the middle finger to be affected in 95% of cases (20).…”

What to Examine in Youth Climbing Athletes: Yearly Examination of the German Climbing Team and its Consequences

“…The yearly medical exam of adolescents and young adults in high professional sports is considered a crucial prophylactic factor to avoid long term negative consequences from the high load through professional sport [9]. We were able to show that these exams also reveal pathological findings in a considerable number of athletes in competition climbing.…”

“…Aerobic capacity has been shown to be also important for climbing specific recovery [7,8]. We also focused specifically on the general and athletic history, physical examination and finger ultrasound [4,9]. In prior analyses we found a history of swollen finger joints in up to 42 % and a minor decreased range of motion (extension deficit > 5°in the proximal interphalangeal finger joint) in 32 % of Youth national team members [10].…”

Are Adolescent Climbers Aware of the Most Common Youth Climbing Injury and Safe Training Practices?

“…Competition climbing is one of the many sports at risk for overuse injury. Repetitive overuse from bouldering and sport climbing, two subdisciplines in climbing, had the highest incidence of injury at 1.13 injuries per 1000 h as compared to acute mechanisms of injury, such as a fall or strenuous move [6]. In 2012, roughly 1.5 million youth between the ages of six and seventeen participated in bouldering or sport climbing in the United States [7], with that number estimated to rise following the inclusion of climbing in the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games.…”