Female Athletes

ACL injury prevention programs for female athletes such as the Prevent Injury and Enhance Performance (PEP) program have value, despite lingering doubts about their effectiveness raised in a new study. While there is evidence that injury prevention programs may reduce the risk of some knee injuries, additional research in necessary, said the study author.

Female athletes are at signficantly greater risk of ACL injuries than male athletes. Up to now, predicting whether a female athlete was at risk for an ACL injury required expensive and complex laboratory-based motion analysis systems, such as those used in creating video games. Now it will be possible  to predict whether an athlete is high risk for anterior cruciate ligament injuries using a simple, low-cost tool in a doctor's office, report the authors of a new study. 

College cheerleaders are at high risk for body image issues and eating disorders - and may be affected by how revealing their uniforms are, according to a study presented at the American College of Sports Medicine's 57th Annual Meeting in Baltimore.

Following a specially-designed warm-up regimen before sports measurably improves muscle strength and flexibility and corrects biomechanical imbalances blamed for the epidemic of anterior cruciate injuries among female athletes.                                                        

Which high school sports pose the highest risk of severe injury?  Football leads the list, slightly more than wrestling and more than twice the rate in girls' basketball and girls' soccer.  The safest of the nine studied? Girls volleyball.

To stem the rising tide of ACL injuries among young female athletes, the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (AAOS) and the National Athletic Trainers' Association (NATA) are launching a joint public service announcement (PSA) campaign to educate athletes, coaches, parents, health care professionals and media on prevention and treatment.

Female athletes who perform a specific exercise program called the Prevent Injury and Enhance Performance (PEP) program before practices and games suffer far fewer ACL injuries than those who don't.