Elite athletes present a picture of health to the general public, but their coaches, physical therapists and orthopedic surgeons tell a different story. Despite the obvious health benefits of regular physical activity, overuse, irregular sleep and competition-related stress wreak havoc on an athlete's muscles and joints. Muscle strains may eventually heal, but joint injuries and pain have a lasting negative impact on an athlete's performance.
Knee Joint Pain
Coaches advise endurance athletes, such as distance runners and cyclists, to alternate periods of intense training with periods of rest and recovery. Overly intense training combined with inadequate recovery may cause tissue breakdown, says Dr. David D. Cosca, in a 2007 article featured in "American Family Physician." Cosca lists patellofemoral joint disorders, also called "runner's knee," as one of the common causes of joint pain amongst endurance athletes. Climbing up and down stairs or hills exacerbates this pain in the frontal knee joint. Lateral knee joint pain may result from a condition called illiotibial band syndrome. The illiotibial band, responsible for knee stability, runs from the top of the outer thigh to the lateral side of the knee. Hill running or running in the same direction on a track may cause illiotibial band tenderness.
Upper Body Joint Injury
The natural instability of the shoulder joint increases its susceptibility to instability problems. Acromioclavicular, or AC, joint separation, for example, is common amongst athletes participating in overhead throwing sports. The acromioclavicular joint connects the outer ends of the collar bones and shoulder blades. AC joint separation often results from damage to the ligaments that connect these bones. Elbow joint pain is common amongst elite tennis players and golfers. The lateral epicondyle is the bump on the outer elbow. Its poor blood supply makes this area susceptible to tennis elbow. Inflammation of the medial epicondyle, located on the inner side of the elbow, is responsible for medial epicondylitis, also called golfer's elbow.
Female Athlete Triad
In 1992, the American College of Sports medicine identified three medical disorders common amongst female elite athletes: disordered eating, amenorrhea and osteoporosis. Eating disorders may include anorexia and bulimia. When combined with an intense daily training schedule, an eating disorder may disrupt the menstrual cycle. Abnormally low estrogen levels often accompany irregular or absent menstrual cycles, and may make female athletes susceptible to osteoporosis. The resulting loss of bone density may cause chronic joint pain.
Aging Athletes
There's an old joke that says that old athletes never die, they just lose their support. Dr. Nicholas DiNubile would probably clarify this statement and say that they lose their joint and muscular support. DiNubile coined the term "boomeritis" to describe the ailments and injuries typical of people born between 1946 and 1964. Age-related anatomical and physiological changes require older athletes to increase their recovery periods, says elite short-distance athlete and orthopedic surgeon Dr. Roger Freeman. Freeman, in an American Council on Exercise interview, suggests that older athletes compete in shorter events. There are several joint pain issues prevalent amongst older athletes. Knee-joint pain, possibly resulting from previous injuries, is common. If the athlete's sport engages some leg muscle groups more than others, the resulting muscular imbalances may exacerbate joint pain.
References
- "American Family Physician;" Common Problems in Endurance Athletes; David D. Cosca; July 15, 2007
- Better Health Channel; Elbow: Common Causes of Pain; Mar. 2, 2011
- The Nicholas Institute of Sports Medicine; Physical Therapy Corner: Shoulder Range of Motion Exercises ; Mar. 8, 2008
- Sports Injury Clinic; AC Joint Separation
- American College of Sports Medicine: Female Athlete Triad
- Dr.Nick.com; Boomeritis; Nicholas A. DiNubile, M.D.
