At these games there have been concerns raised that some of the female Chinese gymnasts do not appear to meet the minimum age requirement of 16 years old. This raises the question - is competitive gymnastics safe for girls under 16 years of age? Historically there have been two areas of concern: growth and development in young gymnasts and risk of injuries. Many people have looked at these issues to determine if indeed young gymnasts are at risk.
It is clear that over time gymnasts are getting smaller but it is not clear whether this is a result of selection or participation in gymnastics. Researchers have found that elite level gymnasts may experience diminished growth during their years of training and competition and then catch-up growth during time off or after stopping the sport. No one is sure whether the catch-up is complete however.
The second concern has to do with young gymnasts and risk of injury. Advanced levels of training and competition do appear to correlate with increased risk of injury. These can be acute injuries like ankle sprain or overuse injuries like wrist pain. Studies also show that elite gymnasts have a high re-injury rate after injury, suggesting rapid return to activity with inadequate rehabilitation.
You may have noticed a lot of the young gymnasts wearing wrist braces. There is a specific injury unique to gymnasts that is an injury to the growth plate of the forearm bone called the radius. As they spend a lot of time walking, jumping and landing on their arms, the growth plate can be injured and actually stop growing. Not only does this cause the arm to be short but also results in long term wrist pain and inability to do gymnastics. The growth plate normally closes around age 14 in girls so is not a problem for older gymnasts.
Andrew JM Gregory, MD, FAAP, FACSM
Pediatric Sports Medicine Specialist
Vanderbilt University; Nashville, TN
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