Citation

DuRant R, Linder CW, Sanders J, Jay S, Brantley G, Bedgood R. J. Adolesc. Health Care 1988; 9(4): 310-314.

Copyright

(Copyright © 1988, Elsevier Publishing)

DOI

unavailable

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

With the increasing number of adolescent females participating in organized athletics, there has been concern over their susceptibility to injury during participation. This study assessed whether females differ from males in the severity and frequency of abnormalities on the preparticipation athletic examination (PAE). Standardized PAEs were performed on 1259 high school athletes. Females were found to have significantly less orthopedic problems than males on both the health history and the physical examination. Females were found to have a lower percentage of abnormalities of the hips, knees, and ankles than males. Black males had a significantly higher rate of hip abnormalities than white males, and black females had a higher rate of knee abnormalities than white females. A significantly higher percentage of males than females were referred for further evaluation prior to athletic participation. Although our adolescent females had fewer physical problems on the PAE that might add to their risk of having an athletic injury, the types of problems that were found in our females suggest that they should participate in more aerobic and strength training sessions prior to the sports season.

Language: en