Preparticipation sports assessment in western Pennsylvania.

The preparticipation sports assessment is considered an important component of medical care for student athletes. Recent debate has ensued regarding the benefit for either athletes or schools from the assessments as currently practiced. This study describes the content, style, and methods of the required preparticipation sports assessments prior to an autumn football season in western Pennsylvania and discusses the implications of these findings. The results suggest that most examinations were brief, with little attention paid to important elements of the history or screening tests. Health education is not an important component of these encounters. In summary, such assessments did not meet either a health or education agenda and probably need to be revised if they are to have legal and medical support.