Can an online doctor clear my kid for sports?

No, not fully. Clearing a kid for sports means signing the preparticipation physical evaluation form, and that signature attests the clinician actually examined your child - listened to the heart, checked blood pressure, tested vision, looked at joints and flexibility. A video visit cannot do those things, so an online-only clinician cannot issue a valid clearance. The exam exists for a serious reason. The AAP describes the sports physical as screening for heart problems that could make exertion dangerous - the rare but devastating sudden cardiac events - alongside asthma, prior concussions, and old injuries that never healed right. The questions on the form about fainting during exercise, chest pain, and family history of sudden death before 50 are the important part, and honest answers matter more than getting the form signed fast. What you can do online: get the history form reviewed, ask questions, and sort out whether an old issue - that ankle from last season, the concussion in the fall - needs extra attention before the exam. Then book the physical itself in person, ideally with the pediatrician who knows your kid, about six weeks before the season so there is time for follow-up if anything gets flagged. Pymander is a free AI doctor, 24/7 by text. It cannot examine or clear anyone, but it can help you complete the history form thoroughly and interpret what the clinician finds.