Archive for Joanne Barker
Does cannabis affect surgical outcomes? We need more data.
After alcohol, marijuana is the most commonly used recreational substance among U.S. adults and adolescents. Up to 22 million Americans 12 or older use cannabis. In a 2022 survey by the National Institute on Drug Abuse, 0.7 percent of 8th graders, 2.1 percent of 10th graders, and 6.3 percent of 12th graders reported using marijuana ... Read More
Cerebral palsy hasn’t stopped Irvin from living large
Irvin, now 18, became fascinated with sports mascots when he was a little kid. What did they do, and could he do that too? Anytime he had an appointment at the Cerebral Palsy and Spasticity Center at Boston Children’s Hospital, he and his mother would stop by Fenway Park to visit Wally, mascot of the ... Read More
Uncertainty surrounds ACL treatment decisions in young athletes. It shouldn’t.
It’s an injury once seen mainly in adults, yet it’s become increasingly common in younger patients. From 2000 to 2020, the number of anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) tears in children and adolescents increased between three- and five-fold. For young athletes, an ACL tear spells six to nine months of downtime, heightened risk for secondary ACL ... Read More
The key to preventing shin splints may be underfoot
Medial tibial stress syndrome, also known as shin splints, is a common and often recurring injury among adolescent runners. Recovery can involve weeks of downtime and sports modifications. Even then, many athletes experience chronic pain. Despite the prevalence and impact of the condition, sports medicine experts have yet to reach consensus about the cause. Theories ... Read More
How Josie’s bad day turned into a campaign to help kids with scoliosis
Josephine DeFilippi (Josie) describes the day of her scoliosis diagnosis as the hardest day of her life. Right when she was looking forward to middle school, ten-year-old Josie was shocked to learn she had a condition she’d never even heard of before. On that same day, however, an unexpected gift from someone she’d never met ... Read More
From medical first to marathon finisher: Corey’s ACL story
Corey Peak’s role as a “medical first” began on a ski slope in 2015 when he tore his anterior collateral ligament (ACL). He remembers falling and hearing two pops. “One side was my binding releasing. The other side, I later realized, was my ACL tearing.” Thirty days after his accident, Corey would become the first ... Read More
Female athletes and sports injuries: Psychology matters
If the goal of sports medicine is to promote sports participation, the state of an injured athlete’s musculoskeletal system is part of a larger puzzle. In fact, a growing body of research suggests that psychological factors also play a significant part in how athletes recover and if they return to sports. Consider anterior cruciate ligament ... Read More
Lacrosse, cerebral palsy, and leadership: Luke’s story
When he returned to lacrosse after surgery on his left leg, Luke Kilfoyle wasn’t nervous. In the five and a half months since his surgery, he’d worn a cast, gone to school in a wheelchair, used a walker, then a cane and ankle-foot orthosis (AFO). He’d spent hours in physical therapy and the gym. By ... Read More
A cerebral palsy journey lands in Boston: Ashlyn’s hip surgery
Eleven-year-old Ashlyn’s parents describe her as spicy, strong willed, and determined. Those qualities have served her well through a medical journey that started soon after she was born with cerebral palsy (CP). Ashlyn has had multiple operations to manage the symptoms of CP, but when it came to the question of hip surgery, her parents ... Read More
One athlete, two hip surgeries, three Ironmans
Trevor Spence grew up playing just about every sport he could. When he was 3, he laced up his first pair of hockey skates. When he was 10, he medaled in the Junior Olympics 1500-meter Track and Field event. Throughout middle and high school, he travelled to tournaments for hockey, lacrosse, and soccer. “I did ... Read More