Special Teams Keep Young People in the Game

Evan, age 11, loves to play football and other sports, so when a lingering knee injury kept him on the sidelines, his parents turned to the Allegheny Health Network (AHN) Orthopaedic & Rehabilitation Institute.

Evan’s pediatric orthopaedist, Dr. Mark J. Sangimino, diagnosed him with a rare condition called osteonecrosis. It stopped Evan’s blood from circulating to a bone in his knee, causing it to slowly deteriorate. Dr. Sangimino was then able to perform a procedure to restore circulation.

Today, Evan is back to reading signals and running football plays, preparing to help take his team to the championship. Evan is living proof that a young athlete can get back in the game when he is supported by a team of caring medical experts and innovative surgical techniques.

Focusing on active youngsters

Health care for children is different than health care for adults. Children’s bodies, especially their bones, respond differently to trauma.

That’s why young athletes rely on the pediatric orthopaedic experts at the AHN Orthopaedic & Rehabilitation Institute for state-of-the-art care that’s close to home. Children can get treatment customized for their needs from our team of:

Pediatric orthopaedic specialists
Bone and joint surgeons
Physical therapists
Sports performance professionals

A pediatric specialist explains orthopaedic care

Dr. Sangimino is a pediatric orthopaedist. He has spent 26 years helping children with:

ACL injuries
Back and neck pain
Elbow, hand and knee problems
Carpel tunnel syndrome

“Evan’s a tough kid and very active,” said Dr. Sangimino. “An MRI showed some abnormalities in his leg that were in danger of doing permanent damage. By drilling holes into the damaged bone, blood was able to reinvigorate his leg. After a few months, Evan’s leg was back to normal. Now he’s back to being a tough fullback for the Leopards.”