New research suggests that athletes who have suffered a past injury are more likely to suffer a future leg injury, even if the original injury was to a different area of the body.
It’s not surprising that someone who suffers a severe ankle sprain would be more likely to suffer future ankle sprains, because the ankle ligaments would be damaged from the original injury, even after some healing has taken place. However, the new study published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine suggests that injuries to different areas of the body can increase an athlete’s likelihood of suffering a lower-body injury down the road.
Future Leg Injuries
For the study, researchers looked at data from 12 previous studies. What they found was that many types of injuries, including head trauma and concussions, were associated with a higher likelihood of a future lower limb injury.
“When we are injured we generally only focus on the body part that is being rehabilitated, yet it is just as important to keep the non-injured parts of your body healthy and injury free,” said lead study author Liam Toohey of La Trobe University in Bundoora, Australia, and the Australian Institute of Sport in Canberra.
However, this focused rehabilitation on one area of the body can lead to reduced fitness levels or a lack of conditioning in other muscle groups, which can lead to subsequent injury when they try to return to athletics.
“During rehabilitation, it is common for the injured body site to be strengthened and conditioned, but often other body sites are not trained as much as they were before the injury,” Toohey added. “So when an athlete is ready to return to full training and competition, the other areas of their body may not be as conditioned as they need (to be) to withstand the demands of the sport – where they may then go on to sustain an injury at a different site.”
For example, researchers noted that athletes who has suffered an ACL injury were more than twice as likely to suffer a future hamstring injury than the average person. This is because the hamstring on the same leg may not be as conditioned as the hamstring on the non-injured leg, so when an athlete is trying to run at full speed, the less-developed hamstring is at risk for injury.
Similar associations were also seen after looking at the data. Muscle injuries to the hamstrings, quadriceps, adductors and calves were tied to a greater likelihood of a future muscle injuries in a different part of the leg. Concussions and spine injuries were also linked to an increased risk of future leg injuries.
The findings suggest that injured athletes and doctors should be aware of how certain injuries could predispose their lower body to future injuries, and move forward with appropriate rehabilitation plans after an initial injury. So if you’ve suffered an injury during athletic activity and want to talk about the best ways to reduce your likelihood of a future lower-body injury, reach out to Dr. Silverman today.