Osgood Schlatters Disease

Frequently Asked Questions - Help and Support

 

1.  How long will I not be able to play sport ?
 
 On average patients who follow the Strickland Protocol as treatment for Osgood Schlatters Disease will have to rest from sport for 3 weeks. Some may take longer because their injury is more severe, or because they don't follow the protocal strictly ! ( they usually cheat by playing some sports, or by accident - they kick a football around during lunchtime not realising REST means TOTAL REST).
 However some patients respond even quicker and I have had some that have returned to sport within 7-14 days. Remember 20 days is the average-that means some return earlier and some later than that.
 Not following the Strickland protocol means your child will suffer from Osgood Schlatters condition on average about 21 months, usually in episodes depending on levels of activity and growth rates. Again some will suffer for a shorter time and some longer.
 The longest sufferer  I had as a patient had had the disease Osgood Schlatter for over 3 years and even she resonded to my protocol.
 
 2. Am I likely to get it anywhere else ?
 
 Osgood Schlatters disease or Schlatter Osgood Disease as some people refer to it, is one of a family of growth conditions affecting young athletes. Others include Sever's disease (heel) and Sindig-Larsen-Johansen (knee cap), and little leaguer's Elbow, which is more common in throwing sports.
 It is possible to have more than one condition- the most common are Osgood Schlatters and Severs, but usually pain in one area stops the child from playing so it  is unusual to get it in more than one area at a time.
 However it is relatively common to get one condition affecting both legs. It  depends on the loading e.g. sprinters and gymnasts tend to use both legs equally so often have the condition bilaterally; whereas footballers tend to have one side dominate and thus often have only one leg affected.
 
 3. What happens if it gets untreated ?
 
 The standard current treatment advice out there is to treat the symptoms of Osgood Schlatters Disease - Rest, Ice, Compression to reduce the pain and swelling;  and modify activities to reduce the inflammation. All this is good advice but does not address the cause, so the problem keeps coming back when the child returns to sport.
 When this happens the lump can get bigger and bigger and the soft cartilage starts to change to bone making the lump permanent. This will have future implications as 60% of patients with these lumps will have pain whenever they kneel for the rest of their lives.
 A small percentage of chronic sufferers may need surgery to remove bony splinters or ossicles from the front of their knees.
 Eventually though the symptoms of pain on activity will go as they finish their growth spurt.
 So if you do nothing it WILL go - eventually- in about 2-3 years.
 
 4. Is this likely to occur again ?
 
 Yes Osgood Schlatters can come back. Usually if the child has another rapid growth spurt and continues to play high volumes of sport, without stretching.
 Keeping up with the stretches as recommended should prevent it from recurring.
 However if it  does recur, following the Strickland protocol again will resolve it in an even shorter time.

Severs Disease

 5. Can Sever's Disease be treated by Jenny Strickland's Protocol?

 Yes it can. But there are some modifications required to the treatment and testing as it is a similar condition but in a different location- the heal. I am now working on a new book specifically for treatment of Severs Disease and again it will be home based without the need for drugs, tablets or braces. My research results for Severs are even better than for Osgood-Schlatters.

 6. What if I have another question ?
 
 Please send any additional questions you may have to physio@proact-solutions.co.uk
 We will respond to every question as soon as possible and may post the question back on the FAQ Forum.
 
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