With six high schools and another on the way, adult sporting leagues and professional baseball, basketball and soccer teams, the number of athletes in Frisco—and the number of sports-related injuries—are on the rise.

Of about a dozen Frisco clinics specializing in sports medicine, the majority started practicing in the last 10 years and several within the past five years.

David Geier, an orthopedic surgeon and sports medicine specialist who is also the public relations chairman for the American Orthopaedic Society for Sports Medicine, said sports medicine clinics are moving into individual towns where the athletes are playing.

"Athletes are not having to travel to see the one specialist within 200 miles," he said.

Dr. Brad Bellard, a specialist with Texas Sports Medicine and Orthopaedic Group, said the demographics of Frisco make it the ideal location for sports medicine clinics. Besides new families flocking to the city on a regular basis, lots of young families who moved to the area some time ago have children who are now old enough to play sports. Frisco also boasts adult sports leagues for the "weekend warriors."

Professional sports also play a role in the popularity of clinics in the area—some specialists, such as Bellard and his colleagues who serve as team physicians for the Dallas Mavericks, are retained by professional athletes as well.

Geier and Bellard said the athletes treated by sports medicine specialists range in age from 8 to 60.

The two said sports medicine specialists know specific sports and what those athletes go through—they are often on the sidelines at games. Therefore, they are able to tailor treatment to meet an athlete's specific needs.

"No injury or athlete is the same," Bellard said.

Bellard said he and his colleagues are starting to see athletes from sports not known for being popular in the area, especially hockey and lacrosse.

"Frisco is being a pioneer, basically branching out to sports you normally wouldn't see in Texas," Bellard said.

Injury trends

Much of what sports medicine specialists deal with are acute injuries, whether they are caused by tripping, falling, landing awkwardly or by overuse.

The most common injuries vary from sport to sport, the doctors said. In football, concussions are common, while basketball sees a high instance of ankle injuries. Baseball players, specifically pitchers, often deal with arm injuries.

Both doctors agree the bottom line, however, is that overuse is the overwhelming cause of injuries, particularly in youth.

"Athletes get funneled into sports earlier," Bellard said. "They get really serious about sports early on, and we are seeing more overuse now."

Geier said youth are now often picking one sport to focus on year-round, instead of playing different sports in different seasons. Leagues formed in what is traditionally the off season for sports have led to the same muscles, ligaments, tendons, bones and joints being used all year long.

Geier said not encouraging youth to focus on one particular sport until they are older is a good way to avoid permanent injury.

"Parents need to remember the purpose for sports," Geier said. "They are about having fun. Let them pick the sports. Change sports with the season to give some parts of the body rest, rather than pushing to play one sport where an injury is almost guaranteed."

Geier said if an athlete gets hurt at a young age, they are more likely to never move on to a higher level.

When injured, Bellard said, athletes are usually anxious to begin playing again, and often the challenge is getting them to slow down and realize injuries take time to heal.

"They have to learn how to pull back on the reins a bit," Bellard said. "I deal with a subset of people who are motivated to get better because they want to get back on the field."

Geier said there is also growth in the efforts made to prevent injuries

First and foremost, Geier said athletes should not play through pain, should get rest from a particular sport and learn proper techniques that are less likely to lead to injury.

Bellard said injury prevention involves not only proper technique, but education and nutrition as well.

Geier said nationwide, there is research being conducted into what can be done to prevent and heal injuries, from new equipment, to rule changes, to advanced uses of science and medical technology to reverse injury damage.