INJURIES
IN SPORTSHIP
AND GROIN INJURIES IN TOP
ATHLETES
Ovricenco
Madalina Dinamo
Sport Club,
Bucharest, Romania
INTRODUCTION. As a
major weight-bearing joint, normal hip function is crucial to
favourable sporting participation being important in running, jumping
and kicking based activities. Although athletic injuries of the hip and
groin occur less commonly than injuries of the extremities, they
represent a challenge for sports medicine practitioners because
clinical assessment of the athletes is often difficult, because of the
complex regional anatomy and of multiple differential diagnostic
possibilities. Moreover, many of the soft tissue complaints in this
area become chronic resulting in extensive rehabilitation time. The
aim of this study was to examine the incidence of posttraumatic
injuries of the hip and groin in athletes registered at Dinamo Sports
Club between 2005-2007. METHODS: We have
examined 109 posttraumatic hip and groin injuries (88 males and 21
female, aged between 8-35 years), representing 2,1% of all the medical
exams. The athletes were assessed clinically and imagistically( X ray,
ultrasound, CT scan and MRI). RESULTS: Most of the
injuries involved the extra-articular soft tissue of the hip
– 99 (90,8%) cases followed by a few cases of referred pain
-9 (8,2%) cases (radiculopathyes and sacroiliac dysfunctions) and only
one intraarticular problem, a pincer-type femoroacetabular impingement.
The distribution on sports discipline placed on top handball (23 cases)
and rugby (29 cases) followed by athletics (15 cases), basketball and
water-polo (9cases each), martial arts (5 cases), gymnastics and
volleyball (4 cases each) and weight-lifting (2 cases). CONCLUSIONS:
1.
Extraarticular disorders of the hip far outnumber intraarticular
disorders. 2. As expected, the most common injuries about the hip and
groin were muscle strains, especially at the superior insertion of the
adductor muscles and in athletes who participate in sports that require
repetitive twisting and turning movements at speed (handball and
rugby). 3. Often referred pain was responsible for hip and groin pain
requering a comprehensive medical exam. 4. Although intraarticular
disorders of the hip are less common, they put problems in establishing
the diagnosis and they severely hinder athletic performance. 5. Most of
the cases of groin pain appeared/reappeared in a team in the same time
during the competitive season meaning that the athletes were all
subjected to inadequate trainings. 6. Preventive training, with
specially designed strength and flexibility exercises, is essential and
should be included in every training programme as an integral part of
the warm-up. KEY
WORDS: hip injuries, groin injuries, top athletes.
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