Sports are resuming, but COVID-19 is changing the playing field

Gina DiPietro 0:06
Welcome to Novant Health healthy headlines. I'm Gina futro. Many young athletes at North Carolina's public high schools are beginning their seasons that have been delayed by the covid 19 pandemic. Sports will look different for players, coaches and fans, and trying to prevent the virus from spreading will be key. In this episode clip, Mertens talks to Dr. Adam Culver, a Novant, Health sports medicine physician about what parents and athletes need to be aware of during competition. Thank you for listening.

Cliff Mehrtens 0:37
What are the safety precautions that athletes have to take during this time of COVID-19 I know it's different depends on what sport you play, what county or state you live in, what age you are, seems different and they're all being jumbled and stuff. But overall, what sort of safety precautions should a person take and let's break it down practice in game think that it's important to

Adam Culver 1:02
acknowledge the personal responsibility that you have.

You know, and set a good example for your teammates as well as others out in the community as an athlete, that you need to be following the rules and making sure that you're doing everything that your authority figures are telling you to do. So whether that wearing a mask social distancing on and off the field, if at all, or court if at all possible. washing hands vigorously using hand sanitizer, all these sorts of things that we've been advocating the general public, do it exact same measures apply for, for athletes. In particularly with practice, the setting is a little bit more controlled. So on the individual team level, you've got coaches, trainers, etc, who can put some forethought in and figure out along with parents and other stakeholders, you know, what's the best, what's the best way to keep the athlete safe. And that's, that's different for each individual sport, etc. Like he, like he said, Game Day Fortunately, the North Carolina High School Sports Association has thought about these things as well. And so they're their guidelines that are in place to ensure that our athletes stay safe. And as well as community members and coaches everybody else. So if if you don't if, if folks don't know what to do, Surely there's somebody on site who does know what to do in terms of keeping keeping you safe.

Cliff Mehrtens 3:11
Now, some sports are different, obviously more risky in terms of COVID-19 and others baseball and basketball, excuse me, football and basketball and much more body contact that if you and I are playing tennis across the net from each other, what sports to use, the more riskier and which ones are perhaps not as risky in terms of the virus.

Adam Culver 3:33
So I think sports that when you have that physical, physical contact or there's a ball being passed around any anything that can allow a respiratory droplet to be easily exchanged to another person. So those are going to be things with physical touch. Like you said football basketball or their contact sports. So those are those are going to be your primary sports where you where you get concerned about spread in that way. Not that the other sports that are non contact Are you know, full foolproof, but definitely those contact sports have carry more of a risk in my eyes.

Cliff Mehrtens 4:30
Is it safer for young athlete to be on a travel, you know, by cross state lines, somebody's going into Virginia, South Carolina we places like that. Your sports have become year round now basketball teams play around baseball teams play here. What about travel teams and safety.

Adam Culver 4:47
So that's going to be again dependent on what the case numbers case load positive positive tivity rates, what they are in one the place that the athlete is coming from and then where the athlete is going. So that that's more specific, you know, you have to kind of look at that either on a case by case basis.

Cliff Mehrtens 5:20
What about athletes who maybe have been inactive for two or three months not working as much as they would be if they were doing organized workouts throughout their offseason? They're excited they're getting back into it, the risk for injury is is a little bit higher, you know, certain injuries, what certain injuries should you be aware of, for, you know, lack of a better term, just going at it too hard, too fast, right out of the gate.

Adam Culver 5:47
So that sets a good stage up for tendinopathy for folks that have issues with heat acclamation for his folks just to be over exerting themselves. And you know, because they haven't given their bodies the proper time to get used to putting the type of athletic stress that they normally wouldn't have gradually built up to, and been able to handle. So, to combat that, I've, what I've been telling folks is, stay ready, so you don't have to get ready. One of the things I love about sports is that there's so many parallels between regular non athletic life, and then what you do on the quarter field, and just like, you know, me as a doctor, I serve my patients best if I'm prepared, and I know what's coming in the door and thought about how I can help them best. So as athletes by just staying prepare, staying ready, keeping in shape as best they can. And, you know, I find that, that general preparedness is, is key in all facets of life.

Cliff Mehrtens 7:25
Talk to what about what if a young athlete does contract COVID-19? What should they do medically? Or what should parents do medically? when can they return? Because that's the first thing they're going to ask, When can I get back to doing what I do?

Adam Culver 7:40
Right. So generally, first off, we we need to see, if you suspect COVID, you need to contact your primary care provider to see what's the best way to get tested. If you have high a high index of suspicion, you want to be responsible and protect teammates and you know, others may be in close contact with you. So consider quarantine starting to self quarantine so that you don't spread it to those other parties. Of course, let coaches trainers, authority figures know what's going on. That's first off. And then once you if you do get a test and you test positively. What we've been having folks do is make sure that they quarantine 10 to 14 days from their first or from that from their positive test date. And throughout that time, they should be in contact with their primary care providers, letting them know if there's any change in symptoms. etc.

Cliff Mehrtens 9:08
Gotcha. Gotcha. All right. Now I want to move into more of like the mental aspect of it. It just sort of asked you what can athletes and how can athletes feel you know, with a metal last season being postponed, or canceled or the uncertainty of Oh, if somebody else gets it? So this Friday, and I just found out on Thursday, you're just the whole athletes are used to routine. They know this time is needed when I do this, this time of the season is when we play this guy. But now things are a lot more jumbled. How do you help young athletes deal? What should they think about mental?

Adam Culver 9:46
Again, I think this is one of those areas where there's a lot of parallel between regular non athletic life and your athletic life. So again, stay ready so you don't have to get ready. So if you continue to stay prepared for competition, whenever you are allowed to compete, whenever that whistle blows, you're ready to compete. And you don't run the risk of some of the injuries that come when you're not prepared. And I know that there's a lot of anxiety, definitely some stress and sadness about some of the uncertainties that COVID has, has brought.

Cliff Mehrtens 10:36 &nb...