Treatment is generally conservative with rest, ice, and specific exercises being recommended. Simple pain killers may be used if required such as acetaminophen (paracetamol) or ibuprofen. Typically symptoms resolve as the growth plate closes. Physiotherapy is generally recommended once the initial symptoms have improved to prevent recurrence. Surgery may rarely be used in those who have stopped growing yet still have symptoms.

One of the main ways to prevent OSD is to check the participant's flexibility in their quadriceps and hamstrings. Lack of flexibility in these muscles can be direct risk indicator for OSD. Muscles can shorten, which can cause pain but this is not permanent. Stretches can help reduce shortening of the muscles. The main stretches for prevention of OSD focus on the hamstrings and quadriceps.