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Sports Career-Related Musculoskeletal Injuries

Long-Term Health Effects on Former Athletes

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Abstract

Despite the high absolute number of sports injuries, most are not usually severe and consequent permanent disabilities are uncommon. Based on epidemiological data, former athletes have more degenerative changes in their joints and spine compared with control populations; however, at old age, their good muscle function related to high physical activity level seems to compensate for the effects of degenerative changes on function. There are former athletes who report disabilities due to different types of musculoskeletal injuries from sports careers. This article attempts to characterise this problem; however, more detailed studies are needed, particularly because the training regimens of the athletes seem to be increasingly demanding.

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Acknowledgements

The authors have provided no information on sources of funding or conflicts of interest directly relevant to the content of this review.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Unit for Sports and Exercise Medicine, Institute of Clinical Medicine, University of Helsinki, and ORTON Orthopaedic Hospital, Mannerheimintie 17 (Töölö Sports Hall), Helsinki, FIN-00250, Finland

    Urho M. Kujala

  2. Mehiläinen Hospital and Paavo Nurmi Center, Turku, Finland

    Sakari Orava

  3. Tampere Research Center of Sports Medicine, President Urho Kaleva Kekkonen (UKK) Institute for Health Promotion Research, Tampere, Finland

    Jari Parkkari

  4. Department of Public Health, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland

    Jaakko Kaprio & Seppo Sarna

Authors
  1. Urho M. Kujala
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  2. Sakari Orava
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  3. Jari Parkkari
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  4. Jaakko Kaprio
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  5. Seppo Sarna
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Kujala, U.M., Orava, S., Parkkari, J. et al. Sports Career-Related Musculoskeletal Injuries. Sports Med 33, 869–875 (2003). https://doi.org/10.2165/00007256-200333120-00001

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