What to Expect From Your Child’s Upcoming Sports Physical

There’s hardly a school today -- elementary, middle, or high school level -- that would allow a student athlete to start their season without being given a a medically-approved thumbs up to play their sport of choice.

The sports physical, or pre-participation exam (PPE), is now a rite of passage for kids and teens who want to play everything from basketball to lacrosse. This quick and simple process determines whether your child can get approved to play. If any underlying issues are discovered, your provider can also address them.

Rest assured that Dr. Smita Tandon and Dr. Angeli Suarez have lots of experience providing sports physicals to the students of Fountain Valley, California, and the surrounding communities.

You or your child may have questions about what will happen during the sports physical and why it’s necessary -- even if your child is a shining example of health. Our team at Doctor 2 Kids is here to answer them.

Why does my child need a sports physical?

Most sports physicals happen without a hitch, but if your child has any undetected medical issues, the appointment is a chance for those issues to be detected and addressed. This acts as an added safety measure between your child’s routine annual check-ups.

Sports physicals allow your child’s physician to:

• Evaluate your child’s overall health.
• Look for any sports injuries that may be present but that you and your child were unaware of.
• Discuss potential injuries with you and your child that are experienced more frequently with certain sports. For example, the doctor might provide advice on reducing the chances of suffering a sprained ankle if your athlete is doing a lot of jumping, like in basketball or tennis.
• Assess your child’s fitness and readiness for a sport, depending on their developmental level.
• Learn as much as possible about a student’s family medical history and factors that might predispose them to certain conditions or injuries.

What happens during the sports physical?

Dr. Tandon or Dr. Suarez notes your child’s weight, height, and blood pressure to make sure they are in the normal range. We also examine your child’s ears, nose, throat, lungs, and heart to rule out the possibility of your child having any kind of infection.

Next, your child’s mobility, flexibility, and overall strength is taken into account because these factors determine how much and how hard they can play their chosen sport. We also check your child’s posture and test their reflexes.

Finally, our doctor welcomes any and all questions from you and your child regarding health -- this is the time to get them answered.

What if the doctor finds a problem and my child has to sit out for a season?

If Dr. Tandon or Dr. Suarez discover some sort of injury or condition, such as asthma, she will create a treatment plan so that your child knows when he or she might be able to play again. Your child might even be able to play during the current season, if some accommodations are made.

If you schedule your child’s sports physical about 6-8 weeks ahead of the start of playing season, you should have time to address any issues that come up in time for the beginning of the season.

Let us give your MVP a sports physical that is thorough and tailored to them

The Doctor 2 Kids team wants to help students in Fountain Valley put their best foot forward this sports season, whether it be on the field, in the pool, or on the court. Get your son or daughter’s sports physical off your to-do list and book an appointment with us today by phone or simply using our online booking tool.