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This one tickled my funny bone a little.....
Hormones Linked to Knee Injuries in Women
2002 February 14
Even when the playing field is level, women playing sports are more likely to suffer a disabling knee
injury than men, and orthopedic researchers say hormones may be part of the reason why.
Dr. Edward J. Wojtys, professor of surgery at University of Michigan at Ann Arbor, said a study of 65
women athletes who suffered an anterior cruciate ligament or ACL tear, found 43 percent of the injuries
occurred at midcycle, when the women were ovulating. He added among 14 women who were taking
birth control pills, the association between ovulation and injury was diminished.
Wojtys presented his study at the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons meeting.
The ACL is the main stabilizing ligament in the knee. Since the 1980s, orthopedists have noticed a
steady increase in the incidence of ACL injuries in women.
Dr. Letha Griffin of Atlanta said, "Women get 4 to 8 times more ACL injuries associated with
basketball and soccer than men do." Griffin is team physician for Georgia State University and a
spokesperson for the orthopedic surgeons.
In an interview with United Press International, Laura Huston, a biomechanical engineer at the
University of Michigan and a co-author of the study, said the 65 women ranged in age from 14 to 46
and the group included high school and college athletes, as well as skiers.
Huston and Wojtys tested urine collected from the women within 24 hours of injury and again at the
start of the next menstrual cycle. The researchers measured levels of estrogen, progesterone and
lutenizing hormones in the urine, allowing them to pinpoint the phase of menstrual cycle.
They expected 18 percent of injuries to occur during ovulation (My note: this is when estrogen levels peak) and 50 percent to occur during the luteal
phase -- the time between ovulation and onset of the next menses. But 43 percent occurred during
ovulation and 34 percent during the luteal phase. The exception was women taking birth control pills --
that dropped the ovulation injury rate to 29 percent.
Huston said, however, the study was too small and the association too tenuous to suggest women
athletes should take birth control pills to avoid knee injuries.
Griffin, too, urged caution, saying women should not "manipulate their menstrual cycles to prevent
injury."
While the hormonal theory is interesting, Griffin said it is more likely a number of factors explain the
ACL rate among women, including anatomy, biomechanics, and hormones.
But she said while anatomy cannot be changed, and HORMONES SHOULD NOT BE ALTERED (BWAHAHAHAHAHA), biomechanics can and should be manipulated to avoid injury. Girls and women need to stop "throwing, running, jumping and pivoting like girls," she said.
Girls and women tend to move in a stiff-legged up right position while boys at play "are bending their
knees, getting closer to the ground," she said, adding THE BEST PREVENTION IS TO TEACH GIRLS TO PLAY LIKE BOYS!!!!
Hormones Linked to Knee Injuries in Women
2002 February 14
Even when the playing field is level, women playing sports are more likely to suffer a disabling knee
injury than men, and orthopedic researchers say hormones may be part of the reason why.
Dr. Edward J. Wojtys, professor of surgery at University of Michigan at Ann Arbor, said a study of 65
women athletes who suffered an anterior cruciate ligament or ACL tear, found 43 percent of the injuries
occurred at midcycle, when the women were ovulating. He added among 14 women who were taking
birth control pills, the association between ovulation and injury was diminished.
Wojtys presented his study at the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons meeting.
The ACL is the main stabilizing ligament in the knee. Since the 1980s, orthopedists have noticed a
steady increase in the incidence of ACL injuries in women.
Dr. Letha Griffin of Atlanta said, "Women get 4 to 8 times more ACL injuries associated with
basketball and soccer than men do." Griffin is team physician for Georgia State University and a
spokesperson for the orthopedic surgeons.
In an interview with United Press International, Laura Huston, a biomechanical engineer at the
University of Michigan and a co-author of the study, said the 65 women ranged in age from 14 to 46
and the group included high school and college athletes, as well as skiers.
Huston and Wojtys tested urine collected from the women within 24 hours of injury and again at the
start of the next menstrual cycle. The researchers measured levels of estrogen, progesterone and
lutenizing hormones in the urine, allowing them to pinpoint the phase of menstrual cycle.
They expected 18 percent of injuries to occur during ovulation (My note: this is when estrogen levels peak) and 50 percent to occur during the luteal
phase -- the time between ovulation and onset of the next menses. But 43 percent occurred during
ovulation and 34 percent during the luteal phase. The exception was women taking birth control pills --
that dropped the ovulation injury rate to 29 percent.
Huston said, however, the study was too small and the association too tenuous to suggest women
athletes should take birth control pills to avoid knee injuries.
Griffin, too, urged caution, saying women should not "manipulate their menstrual cycles to prevent
injury."
While the hormonal theory is interesting, Griffin said it is more likely a number of factors explain the
ACL rate among women, including anatomy, biomechanics, and hormones.
But she said while anatomy cannot be changed, and HORMONES SHOULD NOT BE ALTERED (BWAHAHAHAHAHA), biomechanics can and should be manipulated to avoid injury. Girls and women need to stop "throwing, running, jumping and pivoting like girls," she said.
Girls and women tend to move in a stiff-legged up right position while boys at play "are bending their
knees, getting closer to the ground," she said, adding THE BEST PREVENTION IS TO TEACH GIRLS TO PLAY LIKE BOYS!!!!
I explain the concept of getting your lower body into the punch for power & they're still throwing fists what appears to be aimlessly.
