Sound familiar?
- The limp appeared during the game, and now the ankle is the size of a grapefruit.
- The pitcher's elbow "only hurts when I throw" — which is exactly what he said last month.
- She heard a pop going for the ball, and the internet just told you the three letters every sports parent dreads.
ER, urgent care, or us?
Obvious deformity, open wound, numbness, or uncontrollable pain: go to the ER, now. For nearly everything else — the swollen ankle, the suspected fracture that looks straight, the knee that popped — an orthopedic practice with on-site X-ray gets your child seen by the right specialist faster, and at a fraction of an ER bill.
What young bodies need decided differently
- Growth plates
The part that makes kids different
Growing bones have soft zones adult bones don't. A fracture near one needs a specialist's call — treated right, it's routine; missed, it can change how the bone grows. We make this call every week.
- ACL in teens
The three letters
Yes, teenagers tear ACLs — girls' soccer and basketball most of all — and yes, they can come back fully. Reconstruction techniques that respect growth plates, then the part parents control: not rushing the return. The evidence is blunt — coming back before about nine months multiplies re-tear risk. We clear athletes on strength and movement testing, not on calendar pressure from the season schedule.
- Overuse
The injuries that build quietly
Year-round single-sport schedules built the modern overuse epidemic: pitcher's elbow, gymnast's wrists, runner's shins. The fix is usually load management and targeted rehab with our therapy team — not a lecture, and rarely a scalpel.
- Prevention
The part almost nobody uses
Structured neuromuscular training programs cut ACL injury risk in young female athletes by as much as half. Ask us about it before the season, not after the pop.
Why sports parents land here
Because this is what our sports medicine surgeons do all week — Dr. Eilers covered MLB and NHL teams in fellowship, and Dr. Reid grew up playing on the same Woodlands fields your kids do. Same-day injury appointments at all three offices, Saturday hours in Spring, on-site X-ray and MRI, and a rehab team that speaks teenager fluently. One more thing that matters on the sideline: we'll tell you honestly when it's just a sprain. Relief is allowed to be the outcome.
Common questions
Can we really be seen on a Saturday?
Saturday hours run at our Spring office — because injuries prefer Friday nights. Weekday same-day injury appointments run at all three locations.
Does my child need an MRI?
Often not — a specialist exam plus X-ray answers most injuries. When an MRI is genuinely needed, we do it on-site instead of sending you into a scheduling maze.
My kid plays year-round. How do we prevent the big injuries?
The honest answer: rest is a training strategy, and prevention programs work. We'll build a plan that fits the actual schedule — including the conversation with the club coach, if you want backup.
Medically reviewed by Keith W.V. Johnson, MD, FAAOS · Updated September 28, 2026