Discussion
This study aimed to systematically review the literature on padel injuries to provide an overview of the characteristics, prevalence and nature of these injuries. Our results showed that injuries are common among padel players, with an incidence rate of 3 injuries per 1000 hours of padel training and 8 injuries per 1000 padel matches, and an overall prevalence ranging from 40% to 95%. This wide range may be due to differences in the population, the methods used to collect data and the definition of injury used in different studies.
Comparing the incidence, prevalence and nature of injuries occurring during padel as summarised in this systematic review to other racquet sports can provide important information on the relative risk of injuries associated with this sport. This, is, however, to a certain extent difficult and methodologically inadequate due to the absence of (large) recent systematic reviews on the incidence/prevalence of injuries in other racquet sports, such as tennis, badminton and squash. For example, in a systematic review study by Pluim et al,30 the reported injury incidence varied from 0.05 to 2.9 injuries per player per year, and per hour of play, the reported incidence ranged from 0.04 injuries per 1000 hours to 3.0 injuries per 1000 hours. In two more recent studies (which were not systematic reviews) on competitive adolescent tennis players, the prevalence of injury occurrence ranged from 1.2 to 2.8 injuries per 1000 hours played.31 32 As these three studies included a mixture of both professional and non-professional athletes, comparing to padel injuries should be performed with caution.
Concerning the occurrence of injuries per anatomic location, we could not determine from our analysis whether the lower extremities were more susceptible to injury than the upper extremities. Comparing this outcome in padel to the same outcome in tennis, Sell et al33 studied the overall injury rates per 1000 match exposures and found a significantly higher injury rate in the lower extremities compared with the trunk and the upper extremities. A recent study of squash players, 76% of the injuries were lower-limb injuries.34 In padel, the elbow was the most frequently reported site of injury, and common extensor tendinopathy (tennis elbow) was the most commonly reported specific pathology. Several studies have investigated the occurrence of elbow injuries in other racquet sports. Compared with other racquet sports,33 padel appears to have a higher incidence of elbow injuries. This may be due to the specific nature of the sport, which involves a high number of overhead shots and repetitive movements that place strain on the elbow joint. An interesting finding from this review was the high proportion of tendon injuries reported in padel. This potentially has to do with the fact that the elbow (with the common extensor tendinopathy) was also the most frequently reported location of injuries, and, as such, may contribute to the high percentage of tendon injuries. The finding may be related to the fact that the elbow is suspect to high mechanical demands due to the continuous eccentric contractions occurring after hitting the ball in such a technical fashion to slow down the speed of the incoming ball as a tactical manoeuvre. Another reason for the high prevalence of the tendinous injuries could be that the padel racquet does not consist of stringing, so the tension is properly regulated during stroke hitting—as previously described by García-Fernández et al.25 Other contributing explanations may be that the high number of overhead shots can place greater stress on the tendons of the elbow than on the muscular components around it, and that in padel double-handed backhands are rarely seen, as opposed to tennis.
Concerning the severity of injuries, three studies11 25 28 assessed this outcome. As the way of reporting injury severity varied among studies, no specific conclusions could be drawn. However, both Garcia and Valerio reported mostly mild to moderately severe injuries, with Valerio reporting 16% severe injuries. Moreover, comparing the severity of injuries occurring during padel to other racquet sports cannot be considered appropriate. The comparison is complex and depends on various factors—such as level of play, sex, age of players, etc. Therefore, it is essential to investigate further the nature and severity of injuries in racquet sports to develop effective injury prevention and management strategies. Concerning injuries occurring during practice or competition, one of the two studies concluded that more injuries occurred during competition than during practice, while one out of the two studies concluded the opposite. Here again, an appropriate comparison to other sports cannot be performed.
We recognise the limitations of our study. First, most studies included in our review were conducted in Spain, which may limit the generalisability of our findings to other countries. Second, the definition of injury varied across studies, which may have resulted in underestimating or overestimating the true prevalence of injuries. Moreover, we did not include an analysis on the assessment of risk factors of injury occurrence in padel players, as there needs to be more data on this. Finally, the quality of the studies varied from relatively low-quality to moderate-quality studies, with some reporting limited information on the methods used to collect data or the population studied. Frequently reported reasons for scoring an ‘unclear’ or a ‘no’ as based on the Joanna Briggs Instiute’s critical appraisal checklist were the (in)adequate sample size and the unclarity concerning the adequateness of the response. As such, focus should be on improving these aspects around the methodological quality for future studies on the epidemiology of padel injuries.
Though this review provided a comprehensive overview of the existing literature on padel injuries, there is still a need for further research in this area to improve the understanding of the nature and magnitude. Future studies should consider prospective designs, including larger sample sizes, longer follow-up periods and more standardised injury definitions and reporting methods. Additionally, more attention should be given to the role of individual player characteristics, playing style and environmental factors, as well as the effectiveness of injury prevention and rehabilitation programmes. A better understanding of the risk factors and prevention strategies of padel injuries could help promote this sport’s safe and sustainable practice.