InjuryGolf injuries - common and potentially avoidable
Injuries sustained during golf rarely receive the recognition given to injuries from sports perceived as more violent or strenuous. However, golfing injuries are believed to occur frequently. The aim of this study was to explore the injury profile of female golfers, including treatment sought and the impact of the injury on performance and participation. Forty-one team captains were given questionnaires to distribute to their players. A total of 522 golfers participating in the Victorian Women's Pennant Competition in Victoria, Australia, from both the Metropolitan and Country competitions, completed the study. Over one-third (35.2%) of the golfers reported having sustained a golfing injury within the previous 12 months, with the lower back being the most commonly injured body region. Strains were the most frequent type of injury (67.9%). Of the 184 injuries reported, 154 sought treatment from a health professional. Physiotherapists were the most common health professional consulted. Performance was affected in 78.9% of cases, with 69.7% of the injured golfers missing games or practice sessions due to injury. Golfing injuries appear common and have a substantial impact upon the injured golfer. As lower back strains are the most common injury, strategies such as performing an appropriate warm-up could be investigated to determine the possible injury prevention benefits for golfers. This study has also highlighted that the majority of treatments are from allied health professionals, suggesting that a complete epidemiological description of golf injuries requires information from broader settings than general practice clinics and hospitals.
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Cited by (29)
Injuries associated with golf: A qualitative study
2022, Annals of Medicine and SurgeryCitation Excerpt :Our study showed that 7(34%) players reported having back injuries. This is consistent with other studies done in the past [14,20,21]. It's worth noting that, while low back discomfort is frequent among golfers in this research and many others, it's also common among non-golfers.
Golf is a popular sport played worldwide. The majority of professional golfers work as teaching professionals based at golf clubs. All professional players spend numerous hours on the golf course, placing themselves at increased risk of injury. There have been no recent, large studies investigating injury patterns among male and female professional golfers.
To investigate the frequency, types and mechanism of injury sustained by male and female professional golfers and to compare injury patterns between touring and teaching professionals.
Injury data was analyzed from 77 amateur golfers recruited through a questionnaire asking about their different injuries. A web based survey was conducted focusing on injury frequency, location and mechanism and any subsequent time loss. Factors such as side of injury, investigations for the injury were noted.
The study enlisted the participation of 76 patients. One was excluded due to incomplete questionairres Injuries were reported by 34 patients (45%). Eleven patients said they had an elbow injury. The relationship between the number of years the individuals had been playing golf and their history of injury was shown to be significant (p = 0.0257). Warm up and injury have a statistically significant relationship (p = 0.846).
In order to contribute to making golf a safer and hence more enjoyable lifetime activity, a greater knowledge of golf-related injuries is required. This study attempts to do so, and the elbow was discovered to be the most damaged region.
Epidemiological investigation on spinal injuries among golf teachers in France
2020, Journal de Traumatologie du SportLe golf, sport multigénérationnel, se pratique de 4 à 106 ans en France et, comme tout sport, il induit des blessures qui lui sont spécifiques. Les localisations les plus fréquemment atteintes sont le rachis lombaire et les membres supérieurs. L’objectif principal de l’étude était d’évaluer la prévalence des blessures du rachis chez les professionnels-enseignants de golf français.
Le recrutement s’est fait avec l’envoi d’un questionnaire par e-mails par la Fédération française de golf (FFG) à l’ensemble des professionnels-enseignants de golf déclarés à la FFG.
Deux cent deux patients inclus. La prévalence des blessures du rachis était de 39 %. Deux facteurs de risque des blessures ont été identifiés : les antécédents de maladie de la colonne vertébrale (p = 0,025) et les problèmes de dos et/ou de hanche dans l’enfance (p = 0,038). Au total, 61,1 % des enseignants blessés s’étaient rendus chez l’ostéopathe, 48,6 % chez leur médecin généraliste, 41,7 % chez le kinésithérapeute.
Cette population considère la colonne vertébrale comme une zone de fragilité anatomique importante pour leur profession (37,7 %). Selon cette étude, la prévalence des blessures du rachis chez ces enseignants était de 39 %, ce qui corrobore les précédentes études réalisées chez les professionnels joueurs et chez les amateurs. Nous avons pu remarquer que, dans plus de la moitié des cas (55,6 %), la blessure était récurrente. Il semble donc important d’insister sur la prévention primaire.
Golf, multi-generational sport, is practiced from 4 to 106 years in France and like any sport it induces injuries that are specific to it. The most frequently affected locations are the lumbar spine and upper limbs. The main objective of the study was to assess the prevalence of spinal injuries among professional French golf instructors.
The recruitment was done with the sending of a questionnaire by e-mail by the French Golf Federation to all professionals golf teachers declared to the FFG.
202 patients included. The prevalence of spinal injuries was 39%. Two risk factors for injury were identified: a history of spinal disease (P = 0.025) and back and/or hip problems in childhood (P = 0.038). 61.1% of injured teachers went to the osteopath, 48.6% to their general practitioner, 41.7% to the physiotherapist.
This population considers the spine as an area of anatomical fragility important for their profession (37.7%). According to this study, the prevalence of spinal injuries among these teachers was 39%, which corroborates previous studies conducted among professional players, and among amateurs. We noted that in more than half of the cases (55.6%) the injury was recurrent. It therefore seems important to emphasize primary prevention.
Return to Golf After Arthroscopic Management of Femoroacetabular Impingement Syndrome
2018, Arthroscopy - Journal of Arthroscopic and Related SurgeryTo investigate if patients who reported playing golf before arthroscopic hip surgery for femoroacetabular impingement syndrome were able to return to playing golf postoperatively.
The study was a retrospective analysis of all consecutive patients undergoing hip arthroscopy for femoroacetabular impingement syndrome between 2012 and 2014. Inclusion criteria required that a patient (1) reported playing golf before the surgery, (2) had a minimum 2-year follow-up, and (3) completed patient-reported outcome measures. An electronic postoperative return to golf questionnaire was completed by patients who reported golf as an activity. To evaluate patients' ability to return to golf after surgery, the following variables were analyzed with paired samples t test and χ-square tests: handedness, holes played, modified-Harris Hip Score, and Hip Outcome Score Activity of Daily Living and Sports-Specific Subscale.
A total of 29 patients (22 men; age, 36.0 ± 11.9 years) with a minimum of 24 months of follow-up who self-reported playing golf preoperatively were included in the analysis. Preoperatively, 23 patients (79%) had discontinued golfing owing to activity-related hip complaints. At the final follow-up, all patients had significant improvements in the Hip Outcome Score Activity of Daily Living (preoperatively, 65.9 ± 19.9; postoperatively, 91.5 ± 12.8; P < .0001), the Hip Outcome Score Sports-Specific Subscale (38.2 ± 23.5, 79.7 ± 28.8; P = .0002), and modified-Harris Hip Score (54.8 ± 15.6; 84.2 ± 15.8; P < .0001). Additionally, there was a decrease in pain from 7.34 ± 1.63 to 1.71 ± 2.3 postoperatively (P < .0001), and 97% of patients returned to golf at an average of 7.2 months postoperatively. Postoperatively, 55% of patients (n = 16) noted improved golfing performance, 41% (n = 11) returned to their preinjury level, 1 patient (3%) returned at a lower level owing to non–hip-related problems, and 1 (3%) did not return to golf owing to fear of reinjury.
Arthroscopic treatment of femoroacetabular impingement syndrome in patients who reported playing golf before surgery resulted in significant improvements in hip function and predictably high rates of patient satisfaction, with 97% returning to golfing activity and 55% noting improvement from preinjury sporting performance.
Level IV, retrospective case series.
Golf-related injuries treated in United States emergency departments
2017, American Journal of Emergency MedicineCitation Excerpt :The repetitive motion of the golf swing places heavy demands on the musculoskeletal system, especially the back region. This explains why the lower back was the most common site of injury reported in previous studies [5,7,11,13-18,27]. Although the trunk (which includes the back), was not the leading body region injured in this study, it accounted for almost one-fifth of injuries.
This study investigates unintentional non-fatal golf-related injuries in the US using a nationally representative database.
This study analyzed golf-related injuries treated in US hospital emergency departments from 1990 through 2011 using the National Electronic Injury Surveillance System database. Injury rates were calculated using golf participation data.
During 1990 through 2011, an estimated 663,471 (95% CI: 496,370–830,573) individuals ≥ 7 years old were treated in US emergency departments for golf-related injuries, averaging 30,158 annually or 12.3 individuals per 10,000 golf participants. Patients 18–54 years old accounted for 42.2% of injuries, but injury rates per 10,000 golf participants were highest among individuals 7–17 years old (22.1) and ≥ 55 years old (21.8) compared with 18–54 years old (7.6). Patients ≥ 55 years old had a hospital admission rate that was 5.01 (95% CI: 4.12–6.09) times higher than that of younger patients. Injured by a golf club (23.4%) or struck by a golf ball (16.0%) were the most common specified mechanisms of injury. The head/neck was the most frequently injured body region (36.2%), and sprain/strain (30.6%) was the most common type of injury. Most patients were treated and released (93.7%) and 5.9% required hospitalization.
Although golf is a source of injury among all age groups, the frequency and rate of injury were higher at the two ends of the age spectrum. Given the higher injury and hospital admission rates of patients ≥ 55 years, this age group merits the special attention of additional research and injury prevention efforts.
Epidemiological study on injuries and injury risk factors in the high level French amateur golfer (less than 10 index)
2016, Journal de Traumatologie du SportLe golf est un sport pourvoyeur de blessures chroniques et aiguës. Mieux connaître l’incidence et la localisation des blessures ainsi que leurs facteurs de risque et leurs facteurs protecteurs permettrait de mettre en place des mesures de prévention primaire et secondaire adaptées chez les golfeurs français de haut niveau.
Il s’agit d’une étude rétrospective nationale réalisée par diffusion d’un questionnaire à l’ensemble des licenciés de golf français de moins de dix de handicap. Le questionnaire a collecté des informations concernant les caractéristiques du joueur, sa pratique du golf, son matériel et la survenue ou non d’une blessure au cours de la saison 2015. Une analyse descriptive puis une comparaison entre les golfeurs blessés et non blessés ont été faites, suivies d’une analyse monovariée, puis multivariée pour étudier les facteurs de risque potentiels.
Mille trois cent quatre-vingt-deux golfeurs ont renvoyé un questionnaire complet et ont donc été inclus dans l’étude. On retrouvait 712 blessés (52 %) et une incidence de 1,99 blessures par 1000 heures de pratique du golf. Les blessures les plus fréquentes se situaient au niveau du rachis lombaire (21,2 %), de l’épaule dominante (7,8 %) puis du rachis dorsal (7,4 %). Une analyse a également été réalisée en fonction du sexe ne retrouvant pas de différence concernant le risque lésionnel entre les femmes et les hommes. La blessure principale chez les hommes était localisée au rachis lombaire (23,1 %) et chez les femmes à l’épaule dominante (11 %) et au rachis lombaire (11 %). On notait une récidive dans 37 % des blessures chez la femme et 44,8 % chez l’homme. Les facteurs protecteurs mis en évidence étaient l’absence d’hypersollicitation des membres supérieurs ou le port de charges lourdes au travail, l’absence de suivi par un professionnel du golf (p = 0,026). Les facteurs favorisants étaient un nombre de mois de jeu par an élevé (p = 0,0127) et des clubs d’utilisation récente (p = 0,0034). La blessure entraînait dans 53 % des cas chez l’homme et 56,1 % chez la femme un arrêt du golf et un arrêt de travail chez 9,4 % des hommes et 8,7 % des femmes.
Le golf est pourvoyeur de blessures avec un golfeur de haut niveau sur deux blessés lors d’une saison. Cependant, elles sont pour la plupart bénignes n’entraînant pas de longue convalescence. Le rachis et le membre supérieur semblent tout particulièrement touchés que ce soit chez les hommes et les femmes. La prévention (primaire et secondaire) doit être au cœur de la prise en charge du golfeur en tenant compte des facteurs protecteurs et facteurs de risque au vu du nombre de récidives.
Golf is a sport leading to chronic and acute injuries. Better understanding the incidence and location of injuries and their risk and protective factors would help to implement primary and secondary prevention measures adapted in high level French golfers.
It was a national retrospective study by mailing a questionnaire to all French Golf licensed under ten handicap. The questionnaire collected information on the characteristics of the player, golf practice, equipment and the occurrence or not of an injury during the 2015 season. A descriptive analysis and a comparison between the injured and uninjured golfers were made, followed by univariate and multivariate analysis to investigate potential risk and protective factors.
One thousand three hundred and eighty-two golfers returned a full questionnaire and were therefore included in the study. We found 712 injuries (52 %) and an incidence of 1.99 injuries per 1000 hours of playing golf. The most frequent injuries were at: the lumbar spine (21.2 %), the dominant shoulder (7.8 %) and the thoracic spine (7.4 %). An analysis was also performed by gender, which did not find differences on the occurrence of an injury between women and men. The injury number 1 in men was located at the lumbar spine (23.1 %) and among women in the dominant shoulder (11 %) and lumbar spine (11 %). We noted a recurrence in 37 % of injuries in women and 44.8 % in men. Protective factors highlighted were the absence of upper limb overuse or wearing heavy workload, lack of monitoring by a golf professional (P = 0.026). Contributing factors were a number of months per year high set (P = 0.0127) and recent use of clubs (P = 0.0034). The injury dragged her into 53 % of cases in men and 56.1 % in women judgment of golf and a work stoppage in 9.4 % of men and 8.7 % women.
Golf is a provider of injuries with about one golfer on two injured during a season. However, it remains for the most of them not severe injuries causing few days of convalescence. The trunk and upper limb seem particularly affected whatsoever in men and women. Prevention (primary and secondary) must be at the center of the management of the golfer taking into account the protective and risk factors to avoid recidives.
The crunch factor's role in golf-related low back pain
2014, Spine JournalThe golf swing exposes the spine to complex torsional, compressive, and shearing loads that increase a player's risk of injury. The crunch factor (CF) has been described as a measure to evaluate the risk of low back injuries in golfers and is based on the notion that lateral flexion and axial trunk rotation jointly contribute to spinal degeneration. However, few studies have evaluated the appropriateness of this measure in golfers with low back pain (LBP).
To objectively examine the usefulness of the CF as a measure for assessing the risk of low back injury in golfers.
Field-based research using a cross-sectional design.
This research used three-dimensional motion analysis to assess the golf swings of 12 golfers with LBP and 15 asymptomatic controls. Three-dimensional kinematics were derived using Vicon Motus, and the CF was calculated as the instantaneous product of axial trunk rotation velocity and lateral trunk flexion angle.
Maximum CFs and their timings were not significantly different between the symptomatic and asymptomatic groups. Furthermore, for those golfers who produced higher CFs (irrespective of the group), the increased magnitude could not be attributed to an increased axial angular trunk velocity or lateral flexion angle, but rather to a concomitant increase in both of these variables.
The findings suggested that although the fundamental concepts that underpin the CF seem sensible, this measure does not appear to be sensitive enough to distinguish golfers with LBP from the asymptomatic players.