Why Your Child Needs a Sports Physical Exam in Brentwood, TN

A physical, or pre-participation exam (PPE), is an examination conducted by a pediatrician or primary care provider and is required for sports participation, its purpose is to ensure safety that validates that a child’s health and physical condition are good enough to endure exercise and practice sports safely.

What to Expect: Should I Be Worried?

Many parents get nervous when hearing about a physical exam, we often have to answer the same questions:: “Why does my son require a physical test?” “Why does a kid actually need one?” “Why does the school or team require it?”.If you’re asking any of these and don’t have enough clarity about how PPE works, keep reading.

What Actually Happens During the Evaluation?

The process is pretty straightforward. Once you and your child arrive at the office, the specialist will ask for some background. Every question and answer matters here. This process is about what’s best for your child and how to keep them safe if certain conditions apply. The doctor needs to record past illnesses, injuries, surgeries, chronic conditions, allergies, family history, and current medications.

Understanding how all the data interconnects is important to help measure your child’s overall health. In some cases, parents try to downplay certain aspects of their child’s health due to the desire to see them compete or just to make them happy. It’s important to keep in mind that doing so could have consequences for your child’s health, in the long term.

Moving forward, your child will undergo several basic screenings such as simple vision and hearing checks. The doctor will listen to the heart and lungs to look for murmurs, rhythm problems, or breathing issues.

Examining muscles and joints is also an important part of the process: range of motion, strength and flexibility, balance and coordination. A short interview with your child is also ideal, so the specialist can learn more about their sleep habits, eating patterns, hydration, energy levels, and stress.

👉 Read more: Everything You Need to Know Before Your Child’s Physical in Brentwood, TN

What’s Different: Exams for Girls vs. Boys

A common doubt that we hear at the office is whether there is a difference between how we make the evaluation with boys and girls. The truth is that a female PPE is not that different.

We understand that a lot of parents can get nervous when their children are being examined, even if it is for healthcare purposes, at the point that one of the most frequently asked question is: “Do they check private parts in a sports physical?”. In most routine PPEs, a full genital exam is not always necessary, but boys may be checked for hernias or testicular problems, often when they have already reported pain. Keep in mind that every sensitive exam is discussed first and only done if medically needed and with consent.