Gender and sports injury.Women are at greater risk for sports injuries Sports Injuries Definition Sports injuries result from acute trauma or repetitive stress associated with athletic activities. Sports injuries can affect bones or soft tissue (ligaments, muscles, tendons). than men are, right? Theories have been suggested to explain the statistics, involving anatomical or hormonal differences between men and women. New research suggests that women just need better training to avoid injuries. For example, anterior cruciate ligaments anterior cruciate ligament n. Abbr. ACL The cruciate ligament of the knee that crosses from the anterior intercondylar area of the tibia to the posterior part of the lateral condyle of the femur. tear in the female knee more than in their male counterparts because these women haven't developed their muscles or cardiovascular system cardiovascular system: see circulatory system. cardiovascular system System of vessels that convey blood to and from tissues throughout the body, bringing nutrients and oxygen and removing wastes and carbon dioxide. to match their competitive level or athletic potential. Women, read on before you tear up this newsletter. It appears that fitness is a better predictor of sports injury sports injury A injury sustained practicing or competing in a sport Sites Thigh, foot, knee, lower leg, ankle, hip, finger Types Contusion, strain, sprain, heat exhaustion, lacerations, etc Sports with most Martial arts–judo, tae kwon do, wrestling, than gender. A study conducted by Boston University School of Public Health Boston University School of Public Health (BUSPH) is Boston University's graduate School of Public Health. It is located in the heart of Boston University's Medical Campus in the South End neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts. The Dean is Robert Meenan. investigated gender and frequency of sports injury of Army recruits Recruit or Army recruit is a term often colloquially used to refer to the lowest military rank in various armed services. It usually implies that the soldier so labeled has not yet completed basic training. More formally, "recruit" means a person attending boot camp. during basic training. Over 850 male and female trainees, average age 20 years old, were tested for body composition, flexibility; muscle strength, endurance, and aerobic capacity. The trainees were divided into five groups depending upon level of fitness. During the eight weeks of basic training, injuries and medical records were reviewed. What the researchers found was that with the exception of flexibility, the female Army recruits were less fit than the men--lower aerobic capacity; lower endurance, higher body mass index, and less muscular strength. And they were two-and-a-half times more likely to suffer a serious injury. But here's the significant part: within each fitness group, the women were no more likely to get hurt than the men. If you match men and women by fitness level, gender doesn't predict injury-risk. An incidental but important finding was that the women, because they started out less fit, showed far more improvement in all measures of fitness than the men did. For female athletes this is good news. Intelligent training and hard work can protect you from injury. Sports injury isn't inevitable, it's largely preventable with discipline and knowledge. (American Journal of Preventive Medicine preventive medicine, branch of medicine dealing with the prevention of disease and the maintenance of good health practices. Until recently preventive medicine was largely the domain of the U.S. , 2000, Vol. 18, No. 3, Suppl. 1, pp. 141-146; for more info on injuries go to www.americanrunning.org.) |
|
||||||||||||||||||
Printer friendly
Cite/link
Email
Feedback
Reader Opinion