by Karen Asp (with additional content by Susan B. Caragol)

That's the word from the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (AAOS) and the American Orthopaedic Society for Sports Medicine (AOSSM). The two organizations have launched an educational campaign about boomeritis, or the escalating number of sports-related injuries happening to baby boomers.

In recent years, baby boomers have been racking up injuries at an unprecedented rate. What is the average annual medical cost for these injuries? More than $18 billion a year.

“We are seeing women in their 50s jumping into aggressive programs of Pilates and aerobics, and men in their 50s trying to keep up with their teenagers on the basketball court on weekends,” says Dr. Lee Wolfer, a St. Luke’s physiatrist who specializes in spine and sports medicine. “To avoid serious musculoskeletal injuries, baby boomers need to quit trying to be ‘weekend warrior’ athletes and develop a long-term strategy for achieving a healthier lifestyle.”

Wolfer earned her medical degree at the University of California-San Francisco and completed a residency in physical medicine and rehabilitation (physiatry) at Harvard as well as a clinical fellowship in spine and sports medicine at the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago. As a physiatrist in St. Luke’s Orthopedics Department, she works to relieve pain and restore physical function in patients with acute and chronic pain as well as those with musculoskeletal problems such as acute back and neck pain, tendonitis, pinched nerves and fibromyalgia. Many of her patients have suffered sports injuries because they tried to do too much, too quickly.

“It’s good to have fun with sports, but it’s important not to overdo it,” Wolfer says. “You can’t become physically fit overnight. You need progressive training.”

As a sports enthusiast, Wolfer practices what she preaches. In fact, her own experience with a sports injury served as her motivation for becoming a physiatrist. “I became temporarily disabled in 1986,” she recalls. “I was a final candidate for the U.S. National Rowing team, and while training for club nationals, I herniated a lumbar disc. My experience as a patient included six weeks of strict bed rest, a failed laminectomy back surgery, chronic sciatica, rigid custom-bracing and so on. I entered the University of California Berkeley-UC San Francisco Joint Medical Program as a disabled student and decided to become a physiatrist, focusing on spine and sports medicine.”

Thanks to a successful rehabilitation program of weight-lifting, flexibility training and core strengthening, Wolfer was able to return to rowing, and today she has only occasional back trouble. Currently, she is training for the 585-mile AIDS LifeCycle ride from San Francisco to Los Angeles from June 5^th – 11^th. She emphasizes that baby boomers should be kind to their bodies, making sure they do warm-up and stretching exercises prior to any strenuous activity.

What makes boomers injury-prone?
Several factors have prompted the growing number of boomer sports injuries. For starters, people are living longer. Also, more people are playing sports.

Most importantly, though, baby boomers are the first generation to know how crucial activity is to living a longer, healthier life. "This is the first generation trying to stay active in a body that's aging," according to Nicholas A. DiNubile, MD, an orthopedic consultant for the Philadelphia 76ers and a spokesperson for the AAOS. Of course, there have always been some people who stay active as they age.

DiNubile, a baby boomer who coined the term “boomeritis,” contrasts baby boomers with people from his parents' generation who became inactive as they aged. "If their bodies hurt, they stopped the activity," he says. Not anymore.

Today's baby boomers know that exercise helps keep them healthy and active, but they don't always acknowledge the changes in their bodies. They try to do things they did when they were younger, and that's where trouble starts.

What should boomers know about their aging bodies?
Unfortunately, bodies change with age. Tendons and ligaments lose some of their elasticity, which leads to reduced range of motion in the joints, making these areas more prone to injuries. And when injuries strike aging bodies, recovery usually takes longer.

Without regular exercise, people also lose muscle mass. Muscle loss related to aging usually begins in the mid-forties (earlier if you're inactive) and may decline as much as 10% after the age of 50. Regular exercise can slow that loss significantly, but if you don't use your muscles regularly, the tissues become weaker and less compliant.

Although boomers accumulate a variety of injuries, the most common injuries involve sprains (stretching or tearing of a ligament) and strains (stretching or tearing of a muscle or tendon) in the shoulders, knees and ankles. As a result, tissues tear slowly, causing some soreness. People often don't recognize soreness as a problem, and they work through the pain, causing additional soreness and injuries such as tennis elbow, Achilles tendonitis and shin splints.

How can boomers avoid injuries?
If you want to live a longer, more productive life, you have to exercise daily. But if you're a baby boomer, you have to use your brain, too. "You have to be smart about what you do and realize that at 50, you can't do what you did when you were 20," DiNubile says.

So you may not be able to play hoops to the level of your 30-year-old colleagues. Maybe you can't play as many back-to-back tennis matches as you once could. Make modifications and play smart so that you don't end up a casualty of your ego.

To prevent sports injuries, Wolfer recommends seeing your regular physician, a physiatrist or an orthopedist for a check-up prior to starting any strenuous new exercise program, particularly if you’ve had any previous injuries. “Get an ‘exercise prescription’ from your doctor, and then take it as directed,” she advises. “As with any prescription, be careful not to ‘overdose.’ Start slowly and gradually build up your activity, and avoid ‘bingeing’ on weekends.”

Additional tips from the AAOS and AOSSM for avoiding injury include:

• Stick with a balanced exercise program. Don't rely solely on your sport to keep you in shape, especially if you only play that sport one or two days a week. Follow a program that includes cardiovascular activity, strength training, and stretching.
• Warm up and stretch before physical activity. Cold muscles are more prone to injury, which is why you're asking for trouble if you skip the warm-up. Wake up those muscles with light jogging or walking. Then stretch the major muscles you'll be using; hold each stretch 30 seconds without bouncing.
• Ditch the weekend warrior attitude. You can't possibly make gains in fitness by cramming your activity into two days. Aim for 30 minutes of physical activity every day with activities such as jogging, walking, swimming, cycling and strength training.
• Take lessons. Hire a trained professional to help you attain and maintain proper form in your sport.
• Get the right equipment for your sport. If, for example, the tread on the bottom of your shoes is worn, replace the shoes. If you're a cyclist, don a properly fitted helmet.
• Follow the 10% rule. Ready to increase the level of your activity? Okay, but do so in 10% increments. If you currently walk two miles, don't expect to walk four miles tomorrow. Instead, build your activity level gradually. This rule applies to working with weights, too.
• Be cautious about adding new exercises. Whether you're a seasoned fitness enthusiast or new to exercise, avoid taking on too many activities at once. Add activities gradually.
• Listen to your body. Every day your body sends you messages about how it's feeling. Pay attention to those messages. Do your knees hurt when you ski through the moguls like you did 10 years ago? Then skip those bumps. They're not worth it in the long run.
• Seek professional help if you injure yourself. Consult an orthopedic surgeon for injuries such as tendonitis, arthritis, stress fractures or low back pain.

“I believe that ‘pre-hab’ is far preferable to rehab,” Wolfer says. “In other words, take a prevention-minded approach when you embark on any new activity. The slogan ‘no pain, no gain,’ simply isn’t true.”

Resources:
American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons
http://www.aaos.org

American Academy of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation
http://www.aapmr.org

Dr. Wolfer’s office is located adjacent to St. Luke’s Hospital at 1580 Valencia Street, Suite 703.
Telephone: (415) 642-0707.

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