The Pre-Participation Exam: What Is It?
Everyone knows kids need exercise, and during their formative years many children will take part in school-sponsored sports.
Organized school sports not only help provide kids with exercise, but they also play a critical social role.
Today, many school districts require parents to take their children for a pre-participation exam ("PPE") prior to playing school sports.
Even if children have played sports in the past, schools frequently require a new PPE when changing sports.
The PPE - sometimes better known as a Sports Physical - is a doctor's health assessment of your child, focusing on the sport in question.
It helps identify risk factors amongst children, promoting student health and safety.
Health risks to kids who participate in school sports are generally low, and only about 1% of children who are screened are disqualified from participating in school sports due to the outcome of the PPE.
Whether or not a PPE is required, parents should make sure kids routinely have physicals to keep them safe and healthy.
A PPE is an absolute must for students who shift to vastly different sports - the cardiovascular demands of football are miles apart from the musculoskeletal demands of other sports like wrestling or weight-lifting.
A student choosing to play football might require a different dosage of asthma medication than if they were participating in wrestling or baseball, for example.
Doctors trained to give a PPE understand the physical rigors of each particular sport, and they can search for specific risk factors or conditions to help protect against potential injuries or other health issues.
As part of the process, the doctor will take a complete medical history, including a general family medical history.
What does a PPE look for? Cardiac problems are the overwhelming cause of sudden death in young athletes, so PPEs are commonly performed to identify kids with susceptibility to hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM).
HCM means the heart muscle is thickening, which forces the heart to work harder in order to pump blood.
Doctors will also examine the student for any dermatological, neurological, musculoskeletal, spinal and other health problems that could impact sports participation.
Among the many things a doctor will look for during a PPE:
The results of the PPE will be sent directly to the school.
Organized school sports not only help provide kids with exercise, but they also play a critical social role.
Today, many school districts require parents to take their children for a pre-participation exam ("PPE") prior to playing school sports.
Even if children have played sports in the past, schools frequently require a new PPE when changing sports.
The PPE - sometimes better known as a Sports Physical - is a doctor's health assessment of your child, focusing on the sport in question.
It helps identify risk factors amongst children, promoting student health and safety.
Health risks to kids who participate in school sports are generally low, and only about 1% of children who are screened are disqualified from participating in school sports due to the outcome of the PPE.
Whether or not a PPE is required, parents should make sure kids routinely have physicals to keep them safe and healthy.
A PPE is an absolute must for students who shift to vastly different sports - the cardiovascular demands of football are miles apart from the musculoskeletal demands of other sports like wrestling or weight-lifting.
A student choosing to play football might require a different dosage of asthma medication than if they were participating in wrestling or baseball, for example.
Doctors trained to give a PPE understand the physical rigors of each particular sport, and they can search for specific risk factors or conditions to help protect against potential injuries or other health issues.
As part of the process, the doctor will take a complete medical history, including a general family medical history.
What does a PPE look for? Cardiac problems are the overwhelming cause of sudden death in young athletes, so PPEs are commonly performed to identify kids with susceptibility to hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM).
HCM means the heart muscle is thickening, which forces the heart to work harder in order to pump blood.
Doctors will also examine the student for any dermatological, neurological, musculoskeletal, spinal and other health problems that could impact sports participation.
Among the many things a doctor will look for during a PPE:
- Blood pressure problems
- Marfan syndrome and excessive bone growth
- Exercise-induced asthma
- Post-concussion syndrome
The results of the PPE will be sent directly to the school.
Source...