With approximately 250,000 ACL reconstructions performed in the U.S. each year¹, youth and high school sports organizations are devoting more time and resources to preventing this devastating injury. To support these efforts, the HSS Sports Safety team has worked with partners throughout the tristate region to provide ACL injury education to nearly 7,000 coaches, parents, and young athletes at over 100 free workshops, camps, clinics, and community presentations.

Until now, only coaches in the New York City area could partake in live workshops to learn how to reduce the risk of injury in young athletes. Today, we are launching an online course for coaches that replicates the live workshop experience. Coaches across the U.S. and throughout the world can now learn how to effectively protect their athletes by implementing a Neurodynamic Warm-Up with their teams.

"ACL injuries are a major public health concern with significant short- and long-term impact for young athletes," said James Kinderknecht, MD, primary care sports medicine physician at HSS and co-medical director of HSS Sports Safety. "This course provides youth and high school coaches with a unique education experience and practical tools to help keep young athletes safe and healthy."

According to our surveys, 99 percent of coaches who participated in live workshops reported an increase in their understanding of how to reduce the risk of ACL injury and effectively implement an ACL injury prevention program for their athletes. Additionally, all coaches who participated said they would recommend the workshop to other youth sports coaches.

"Since its inception, our program has encouraged coaches, administrators, young athletes, and their parents to share the responsibility for reducing the risk of ACL injuries," said Joseph Janosky, director of HSS Sports Safety. "We have seen firsthand the positive impact that educating coaches has had, and we look forward to sharing this important resource outside of the New York metropolitan area."

Hospital for Special Surgery (HSS) pioneered the Sports Safety ACL program in mid-2016 under a grant from HSS board member James Dinan and his wife, Elizabeth Miller, through The Dinan Family Foundation.

1 Am J Sports Med September 2, 2016 The Cost-Effectiveness of Anterior Cruciate Ligament Reconstruction in Competitive Athletes. Bruce A. Stewart, MD, MBA, Amit M. Momaya, MD, Marc D. Silverstein, MD and David Lintner, MD. Investigation performed at the Houston Methodist Hospital, Houston, Texas, USA