My daughter is also 16 years old and is a pole vaulter as well as a top level soccer player. She has had chronic lower back pain for about 10 months. It got to the point she could no longer play soccer and could vault with a lot of pain. We went to a Orthopedic Spine Specialist and she has the exact diagnosis as your daughter: bilateral pars defects/fractures in L5 with 3 mm gap and grade 1 spondylolisthesis. She is in a BOB brace for 3 months, first 8 weeks no activity, if pain subsides then 8 weeks of PT. If after 3 months pain is gone can proceed working back into sports. If after 6 months no improvement/pain then surgery is suggested. The PARS fractures will not heal without surgery. Much like you daughter my daughter was been recruited for soccer and was on her way to being a D1 recruit for pole vault too. She has hopes of continuing soccer in college but not sure if this will be possible without surgery. She said she would want the surgery if it comes to that. In the meantime, she is struggling with the inactivity, cloudiness of the future, possible change in her lifes plans, etc... I told her I never want her to touch a pole vault pole again as we think this is what put her back issue over the edge into spondolythesis.
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My daughter is also 16 years old and is a pole vaulter as well as a top level soccer player. She has had chronic lower back pain for about 10 months. It got to the point she could no longer play soccer and could vault with a lot of pain. We went to a Orthopedic Spine Specialist and she has the exact diagnosis as your daughter: bilateral pars defects/fractures in L5 with 3 mm gap and grade 1 spondylolisthesis. She is in a BOB brace for 3 months, first 8 weeks no activity, if pain subsides then 8 weeks of PT. If after 3 months pain is gone can proceed working back into sports. If after 6 months no improvement/pain then surgery is suggested. The PARS fractures will not heal without surgery. Much like you daughter my daughter was been recruited for soccer and was on her way to being a D1 recruit for pole vault too. She has hopes of continuing soccer in college but not sure if this will be possible without surgery. She said she would want the surgery if it comes to that. In the meantime, she is struggling with the inactivity, cloudiness of the future, possible change in her lifes plans, etc... I told her I never want her to touch a pole vault pole again as we think this is what put her back issue over the edge into spondolythesis.
March 29, 2018 - 12:07pmThis Comment
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