Belleville Schools Look to Prevent Athletes' Injuries

With concussions and serious sports injuries a major topic across the country, the Belleville Board of Education hosted a sports physical therapy company owner to talk about preventing and minimizing injuries to student athletes.

Dave Del Vecchio is regional director for Sportscare of America, a company that provides physical therapy the Brooklyn Nets of the National Basketball Association.

Del Vecchio said his team of physical therapists treats and rehabilitates orthopedic ailments and injuries.

His team will perform impact concussion testing, and the latest available "functional movement screening," which may become a part of the seasonal sports seasons for the Belleville school district.

Del Vecchio and his colleague demonstrated how athletes are tested for all basic athletic movements for any problems that might be helped through "corrective exercises."

After the demonstration, school board member Bill Freda asked what Del Vecchio might prescribe for some athlete who is found to have a weakness.

"Depending on the problem, we might give them specific extra stretching to do," Del Vecchio  said.

The school board has given Sportscare of America, with a location on Franklin Avenue in Nutley, permission to start working with athletes.

Sportscare has a clinical team of licensed physical therapy professionals have extensive experience in the treatment and rehabilitation of orthopedic ailments and injuries, that uses a team approach to patient care that combines the expertise of physicians, physical therapists, athletic trainers and exercise physiologists, according to its website.