Sports Health

BACKGROUND: Lower extremity bone stress injuries (BSIs) are common among athletes who participate in high-impact activities. Conventional imaging is limited in assessing healing of BSIs. HYPOTHESIS: Serial ultrasonography (US) can identify changes in appearance of lower extremity BSIs over time that can be correlated with symptoms and return to exercise/sport. STUDY DESIGN: Cohort observational study. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: Level 3...

BACKGROUND: Youth sport specialization is a growing trend in youth sports and is associated with an increased risk of injuries and burnout. However, it is unknown how sport specialization is perceived to be affecting the working environment of secondary school athletic trainers (ATs). The purpose of this paper is to describe how ATs perceive youth sport specialization impacting their workload and whether they perceive it to impact patient safety. HYPOTHESIS: ATs will perceive that youth sport specialization impacts their workload and could impact patient safety...

BACKGROUND: Taurine (TAU) and caffeine (CAF), as common ergogenic aids, are known to affect exercise performance; however, the effects of their combined supplementation, particularly in high temperature and humidity environments, have not been studied. HYPOTHESIS: The combination of TAU and CAF will have a greater effect on endurance cycle performance and improve changes in physiological indicators during exercise compared with TAU or CAF supplementation alone and placebo...

BACKGROUND: Hamstring (HS) strength deficits and imbalances have been identified as risk factors for sustaining anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injuries and muscular strains, with HS injuries being the most prevalent muscle injuries in soccer athletes. The aim of this study was to investigate HS eccentric strength before and after a soccer match in both male and female soccer athletes. HYPOTHESIS: Soccer athletes have changes in eccentric HS strength after a soccer game...

CONTEXT: Previous research has demonstrated that using a multicomponent approach to ankle injury preventions can significantly reduce ankle injuries; however, these studies lack specific intervention recommendations. OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the exercise components of prevention programs on ankle injuries specifically in high school athletes. Secondary objectives were to assess the overall effectiveness of prevention programs on ankle injuries in this population and how compliance and education may impact success...

CONTEXT: Interest in the relationship between psychology and the outcomes of anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) reconstruction (ACLR) continues to grow as variable rates of return to preinjury level of activity continue to be observed. EVIDENCE ACQUISITION: Articles were collected from peer-reviewed sources available on PubMed using a combination of search terms, including psychology, resilience, mental health, recovery, and anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction...

CONTEXT: The ongoing opioid epidemic and associated adverse effects impart a large burden on our current healthcare system. The annual economic and noneconomic cost of opioid use disorder and fatal opioid overdose is currently estimated at $1 trillion. OBJECTIVE: This review presents the prevalence, frequency of use, need, and effectiveness of opioid analgesia in the youth and adolescent athlete population. It identifies current indications for opioid versus nonopioid analgesic use in the setting of acute orthopaedic injuries, postoperative management, concussion, and chronic pain...

CONTEXT: Tennis-specific musculoskeletal (MSK) screening can assess range of motion (ROM) and muscular imbalances. Identifying normative values before implementing a MSK screen is essential in contributing to athlete performance and injury risk profiles. OBJECTIVE: To review upper extremity MSK data in healthy tennis players across age, sex, and level of play. DATA SOURCE: The Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses guidelines were followed for this review...

BACKGROUND: Injury in sport is an inherent risk to participation, and it can have devastating consequences for the athlete, both mentally and physically. Previous research has found that impairments in wellbeing can increase the risk of injury, and that various forms of mindfulness training and practice can improve wellbeing and mental health in various populations. HYPOTHESIS: Mindfulness would be associated with greater wellbeing and lower risk of injury. STUDY DESIGN: Cohort study...

BACKGROUND: Pre-existing mental health diagnoses may contribute to greater emotional symptom burden and prolonged recovery after concussion. HYPOTHESIS: Youth with pre-existing mental health diagnoses will have greater emotional symptom burden, greater risk for delayed return to exercise, and more prolonged recovery from concussion than those without those diagnoses. STUDY DESIGN: Prospective cohort. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: Level 3...

BACKGROUND: Securing a professional baseball career is a formidable task, and only a unique few can overcome the obstacles necessary to become a Major League player in the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO). When achieving a spot in a KBO Major League team, a player's technical aspect may be influenced by their initial neuropsychological status. HYPOTHESIS: Personality and neurocognitive functions influence long-term pro-baseball league success. STUDY DESIGN: Cohort observational study...

BACKGROUND: There are little to no data on whether any associations exist between sport specialization and mental health in youth softball athletes. HYPOTHESIS: Highly specialized youth softball athletes will have worse self-reported depression and anxiety symptom scores compared with low and moderate specialized athletes. STUDY DESIGN: Cross-sectional survey. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: Level 4. METHODS: An online cross-sectional survey was distributed in the fall of 2021 to a national sample of female youth softball athletes between the ages of 12 and 18 years...

No abstract text is available yet for this article.

BACKGROUND: The health benefits associated with recreational running are challenged by the occurrence of running-related injuries (RRIs). Effective preventive measures require knowledge of sport injury etiology. Psychological factors such as perfectionism, mental toughness, and passion are believed to predispose to sports injury by influencing training behaviors, motivation to run, and suppression of feelings of fatigue and pain. Yet their association with RRIs are understudied. HYPOTHESIS: Perfectionism, mental toughness, and passion predict an increased risk of RRIs in recreational runners...

No abstract text is available yet for this article.

BACKGROUND: Previous studies show alarming rates of burnout and dropout from sports participation and physical activity in the youth population. Early sports specialization may increase the risk of injury, burnout, and eventual dropout from sports. HYPOTHESIS: Sports participation will decrease, specialization will increase, and burnout will increase from junior high to high school. STUDY DESIGN: Prospective longitudinal study. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: Level 2b...

BACKGROUND: Basketball-related fractures involving the lower extremities frequently present to emergency departments (ED) in the United States (US). This study aimed to identify the primary mechanisms, distribution, and trends of these injuries. HYPOTHESIS: We hypothesize that (1) lower extremity fracture frequency will decrease from 2013 to 2022, (2) the ankle will be the most common fracture site, and (3) noncontact twisting will be the most common injury mechanism...

CONTEXT: Competitive swimmers are at high risk of overuse musculoskeletal injuries due to their high training volumes. Spine injuries are the second most common musculoskeletal injury in swimmers and are often a result of the combination of improper technique, high loads on the spine in strokes that require hyperextension, and repetitive overuse leading to fatigue of the supporting trunk muscles. The purpose of this review is to summarize the current evidence regarding swimming biomechanics, stroke techniques, and common injuries in the lumbar spine to promote a discussion on the prevention and rehabilitation of lower back injuries in competitive swimmers...

BACKGROUND: The purpose of this study was to compare the benefits of sport participation with no sport participation during the COVID-19 pandemic and determine the moderating effects of race and ethnicity, socioeconomic status (SES), and physical activity (PA) on mental health in adolescent athletes. HYPOTHESIS: Sport participation would be associated with greater improvements in mental health for athletes from racial and ethnic minority and lower SES groups compared with White and high SES groups...

CONTEXT: Coaches play an important role in promoting mental health in elite sports. However, they themselves are exposed to risks affecting their mental health, and their fears and worries are often overlooked. Moreover, it remains unclear how coaches' mental health affects their athletes' mental health. OBJECTIVE: To create a compilation of the literature on (1) elite coaches' mental health and (2) how coaches' mental health influences elite athletes' mental health...