Faculty Bibliography

Sports neurology is a relatively new specialty in neurology. Interested trainees may find it difficult to learn about issues in sports neurology both in medical school and residency. This review highlights what the current state is in medical school and residency training and how an interested trainee or neurologist could pursue a career in this area.

Structural and functional elements of biological systems are highly conserved across vertebrates. Many neurological and psychiatric conditions affect both humans and animals. A cross-species approach to the study of brain and behaviour can advance our understanding of human disorders via the identification of unrecognized natural models of spontaneous disorders, thus revealing novel factors that increase vulnerability or resilience, and via the assessment of potential therapies. Moreover, diagnostic and therapeutic advances in human neurology and psychiatry can often be adapted for veterinary patients. However, clinical and research collaborations between physicians and veterinarians remain limited, leaving this wealth of comparative information largely untapped. Here, we review pain, cognitive decline syndromes, epilepsy, anxiety and compulsions, autoimmune and infectious encephalitides and mismatch disorders across a range of animal species, looking for novel insights with translational potential. This comparative perspective can help generate novel hypotheses, expand and improve clinical trials and identify natural animal models of disease resistance and vulnerability.

Participation in sports offers both short-term and long-term physical and psychosocial benefits for children and adolescents. However, an overemphasis on competitive success in youth sports may limit the benefits of participation, and could increase the risk of injury, burnout, and disengagement from physical activity. The National Basketball Association and USA Basketball recently assembled a group of leading experts to share their applied research and practices to address these issues. This review includes the group's analysis of the existing body of research regarding youth sports participation and the related health, performance, and psychosocial outcomes. Based upon this, age-specific recommendations for basketball participation are provided that aim to promote a healthy and positive experience for youth basketball players.

BACKGROUND: Early sport specialization is not a requirement for success at the highest levels of competition and is believed to be unhealthy physically and mentally for young athletes. It also discourages unstructured free play, which has many benefits. PURPOSE: To review the available evidence on early sports specialization and identify areas where scientific data are lacking. STUDY DESIGN: Think tank, roundtable discussion. RESULTS: The primary outcome of this think tank was that there is no evidence that young children will benefit from early sport specialization in the majority of sports. They are subject to overuse injury and burnout from concentrated activity. Early multisport participation will not deter young athletes from long-term competitive athletic success. CONCLUSION: Youth advocates, parents, clinicians, and coaches need to work together with the sport governing bodies to ensure healthy environments for play and competition that do not create long-term health issues yet support athletic competition at the highest level desired.

PURPOSE OF REVIEW: The purpose of this review is to discuss peripheral nerve injuries in sport and to discuss such injuries within the context of their mechanisms of action. RECENT FINDINGS: This review is based on the author's personal experience combined with analysis of pertinent articles and reviews. Peripheral nerve injuries are uncommon in sport, but represent a potentially serious cause of morbidity to the athlete. Although making a diagnosis of the involved peripheral nerve is not necessarily difficult for the practicing neurologist, it is critical to always place peripheral nerve injury in sport within the context of sports medicine. Nerve injuries do not occur in isolation, but rather are intertwined with the conditioning of the athlete, the biomechanics of the sport, and the use of protective equipment. SUMMARY: In assessing peripheral nerve injuries in sport, it is not enough to simply make a diagnosis of the involved nerve; the physician must also assess whether the nerve became injured through a process of direct acute compression or stretching, repetitive compression and stretching over time, or another mechanism such as ischemia or laceration. Diagnosing sports-related peripheral nerve injuries within the context of their mechanism of action better allows for the possibility of functional rehabilitation.