High school athletes across the country are already feeling the heat as teams begin practices for several sports, including football, cross country and soccer.

While student athletes and coaches are anxious to get the season under way, experts say it’s important to stay safe, especially when it comes to practicing during the grueling August temperatures.

“The summer heat is very dangerous for so many different reasons, and it is important to know and identify those risk factors associated with heat related illnesses, particularly the athletes, their coaches and the staff who work with them,” says Faheem Ahmad, MD, a family practice physician with OSF HealthCare, who completed a fellowship in sports medicine.

According to the National Center for Catastrophic Sport Injury Research, heat stroke is the third-most common cause of sudden death among high school athletes behind cardiac arrest and traumatic brain injuries. Already this year, a 16-year-old student athlete from Memphis, Tennessee, collapsed during football practice and died from organ failure caused by severe heat stroke. 

Dr. Ahmad says athletes can experience anything from feeling tired from heat exhaustion to symptoms of heat stroke, which can include fainting, loss of consciousness and a body temperature above 103.  

“Other signs include having headaches, feeling nausea, pains in the body, muscle cramps and then dry mouth is also one of the signs because dehydration and heat illness go hand in hand,” he says.

It’s also important to stay properly hydrated. Working out for more than an hour? Frequent water breaks are necessary and so are sports drinks. “I usually recommend sports drinks, because they do have the electrolytes required for you to replenish, because you lose sodium and other electrolytes when you sweat,” he says. He added that it’s important to hydrate four hours before a game or practice and continuing throughout the event.

But it’s not just the heat student athletes have to contend with over the next month. Injuries such as ankle sprains, pulled muscles and broken bones are another potential hazard as teams prepare for the upcoming season. In the U.S., more than 3.5 million injuries occur each year among the 30 million children and teens who participate in some form of organized sports.

“There is an increased incidence of ACL ruptures and ankle injuries, whether it be the ATFL (anterior talo-fibular ligament), which is one of the ligaments in the ankle. They tend to be injured more and require more intervention from medical personnel during the summer,” says Dr. Ahmad.

Regardless of the sport or activity, Dr. Ahmad says it’s important to have an emergency plan in place that everyone involved is familiar with. Emergency situations can happen at any time during practices and games. Knowing what to do and how to respond quickly, he says, are critical in giving athletes the best possible care in emergency situations.

“As an athlete, coach or trainer, you have to know the risk factors associated with all these conditions,” he says. “If you know that the UV index is going to be high, if you know the temperature in the dry air is going to be high, if you know that you are going to have a very humid day, try to avoid peak times for that day, because the peak of those temperature and risk factors will cause damage.”

Dr. Ahmad says the bottom line is this: don’t over train, know your limits and pay attention to any early symptoms of a potential health issue, whether it’s a headache, weakness, tingling or numbness. If you have any concerns, talk to your coaches and trainers as soon as possible.

The American Red Cross offers the following tips:

• Learn CPR, how to use an AED and how to treat heat cramps, heat exhaustion and heat stroke.
• Schedule practices early in the day or later in the evening and not during the hottest times of the day.
• Lower the intensity of practices until the athletes get used to the heat.
• Make sure players drink plenty of water to avoid muscle cramping or heat-related illness. Fluids should be consumed frequently during strenuous activity and within a half hour of training.
• Include warm-ups before strenuous exercise to help prevent injury.
• Plan frequent and longer breaks. Ideally, pause practice every 20 minutes for athletes to drink fluids and rest in the shade if possible.
• Reduce the amount of heavy equipment athletes wear in the extremely hot weather. Encourage lightweight, light-colored cotton T-shirts and shorts.
• Use the buddy system to encourage athletes to drink water and watch for signs of illness in their teammates.

Interview Clips 

Illinois averages 10 days with temperatures at or above 90 degrees each year, according to the Illinois State Climatologist. 

In typical summer fashion, temperatures are reaching the 90-degree mark this week.

This summer weather puts many people at risk for heat exhaustion and heat stroke. Not only outdoor workers, but kids, older adults and those without working A/C in their buildings could be affected.

Brian Curtis, MD, vice president chief medical officer of OSF Medical Group, says preparation and awareness are keys to staying safe in the summer heat.

“You’ll go from heat exhaustion before you get to heat stroke,” Dr. Curtis says. “Heat exhaustion is where people are cool, clammy, sweating profusely, and they may have some nausea or vomiting. They usually have some severe muscle cramping with it.”

If heat exhaustion is not recognized and treated quickly, Dr. Curtis says heat stroke can then happen.

“With heat stroke, they’ll have dry skin, a temperature of 102-103 degrees, they’ll be confused or passed out,” Dr. Curtis says. “That’s a medical emergency, a 911 call. Whereas with heat exhaustion, you need to get them out of the heat, get them into a cool environment, and get them some liquids.”

Dr. Curtis says hospitals see heat stroke patients every summer, especially during longer stretches of hot and humid weather. He says higher humidity causes our bodies to not be able to cool as easily.

But these dangers don’t just affect outside workers or athletes playing sports in the summer. Dr. Curtis says the main excessive heat victims are middle-aged people, but kids and older adults are more susceptible.

“Because they don’t heat and cool themselves as easily, they’re more prone to get it, and we tend to be more vigilant with them,” Dr. Curtis says.

Heat exhaustion or heat stroke aren’t solely seen outside, either.

“If you get into the mid or upper 90s, we have some people around here who still don’t have air conditioning. You can get heat exhaustion and heat stroke within a building,” Dr. Curtis says. “When people don’t have air conditioning, that’s when you really see a lot of the elderly develop heat exhaustion within their own homes.”

Prevention of heat exhaustion and heat stroke

- Drink plenty of liquids (water, fruit juice, sports drinks)

- Avoid dehydrating liquids like alcohol and caffeinated beverages

- Take frequent breaks

- Get out of the sun and into the shade

- Use sunscreen and avoid getting sunburnt

- Use the buddy system: Keep an eye on each other

Dr. Curtis adds the effects of heat stroke can be long-lasting, or even lead to death.

“People die of it every year, or they have debilitating conditions afterwards,” Dr. Curtis says. “Once you’ve had heat stroke, you tend to be more susceptible to the heat as you go forward. Your body does not regulate as well and so you can be more prone to develop it in the future.”

For More Information

When it comes to extreme temperatures, play it safe. Know the warning signs of heat stroke and take the proper steps to prevent it.

Symptoms of Heat Exhaustion

• Profuse sweating
• Water depletion (causes extreme thirst)
• Weakness
• Dizziness
• Salt depletion (causes muscle cramps)
• Nausea
• Vomiting
• Fainting
• Headache

Symptoms of Heat Stroke

• Body temperature greater than 104° F (main sign)
• No sweating in hot weather
• Neurological problems such as confusion, unconsciousness, and seizures
• Rapid breathing
• Increased heart rate

Video Interview Clips

TV PKG

B-Roll

A group of about 40 participants in a recent training session at the OSF HealthCare Athletic Training Center at Illinois State University braved high humidity in the domed field to get a refresher on emergency procedures for medical emergencies during high school practices or sporting events.

As part of a collaboration, athletic trainers from ISU and OSF HealthCare gave high school trainers and master’s degree students from ISU’s Athletic Training program a refresher on critical skills. The timing was planned to be aligned with the start of practices and the Illinois High School Athletic Association (IHSA) sports season on August 11.

Joe Whitson, former athletic trainer and OSF HealthCare manager of the office that provides physician athletic trainers, says they simulated some of the most common conditions trainers see on the field.

“We had various stations going on, whether it was splinting and spine boarding, treatment of the spine-injured athlete. Dr. Rai, one of our sports medicine physicians, was here as well to help supervise. He was here giving pointers, walking around the stations, also working with our athletic trainers, giving them pointers and tips on skills that they can utilize out in the clinical field.”

OSF provides athletic trainers to seven local high schools, which were represented in the training. Whitson says the training helped reinforce how to identify symptoms of various conditions.

“Hitting tips on hydration, hitting tips on how to recognize the difference between sickle cell anemia, heat stroke and rhabdomyolysis. Unfortunately, with the increase in high school participation, high school athletes participating in sports, obviously, the incidence of these types of episodes are increasing as well.”

Rhabdomyolysis is a serious condition where damaged muscle tissue breaks down, releasing its contents into the bloodstream.

Whitson says every year there are headlines of student athletes who have issues and are admitted to the hospital due to some of these conditions, so it was important to go over related symptoms and emergency procedures, not only to know how to respond, but also how to prevent medical emergencies.

High school athletes want to perform at their highest level, and in many cases, they’re pushing for a college scholarship, so Whitson says it’s important for coaches to have support from medically trained professionals.

“That’s really a benefit that we've been able to provide here at OSF within the community, to be able to have those athletic trainers as resources, so that the coaches at all of our high schools have a resource to be able to lean on that’s clinically and medically trained to be able to handle those types of situations.”

The training emphasized communication as participants switched off playing roles, serving either as the lead practitioner, a medical assistant or the athlete. The training even highlighted infant CPR in case of a situation that might occur in stands.

Whitson stresses the IHSA has put safety standards into place to prevent injuries and medical emergencies and he says athletic trainers provide education around those protocols.

“The athletic directors obviously are in charge and kind of house enforcement of some of those things for student athlete safety. And that's the great thing where these athletic trainers from OSF, are able to come in and be able to educate the athletic directors, the student athletes, the coaches, and give those speaking points that are critical to be able to take care of them.”

ISU’s athletic training department has been hosting emergency training events for several years to make sure its staff is ready to handle emergencies that arise. This year, under a new collaboration with OSF HealthCare, it was the first time it was open to other community members.

Joe Whitson

B-roll for OSF-ISU train the trainers for medical emergencies

High school athletes across the country will soon feel the heat when teams begin practices for several sports including football, cross country and soccer. 

Health experts say it's important to stay safe, especially when it comes to practicing during the grueling August temperatures. 

According to the National Center for Catastrophic Sport Injury Research, heat stroke is the third-most common cause of sudden death among high school athletes behind cardiac arrest and traumatic brain injuries.

Dr. Faheem Ahmad, a family practice physician with OSF HealthCare, says athletes can experience anything from feeling tired because of heat exhaustion, to symptoms of heat stroke, which can include fainting, loss of consciousness and a body temperature above 103 degrees.

“The summer heat is very dangerous for so many different reasons, and it is important to know and identify those risk factors associated with heat related illnesses, particularly the athletes, their coaches and the staff who work with them," Dr. Ahmad says. 

Other signs of heat stress include headaches, nausea, body pain, muscle cramps and dry mouth. Dr. Ahmad says hydration is key, so take frequent water breaks and drink sports drinks with electrolytes.

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