When people think of golf, they don’t really think of it as a sport that its athletes suffer from many injuries; but in fact there are many injuries that can occur for players. The most common golf injuries occur in the lower back, elbows, shoulders, hands and wrists, and are generally defined as either cumulative (overuse) or acute (traumatic) injuries. The impact and stress of the repetitive motion of the swing is sometimes hard on the muscles and joints, especially if you ignore any early warning signs of an injury. The following are some examples of injuries golfers might suffer from:
Back Pain- The golf swing puts a lot of stress on a golfers back. The back pain may be due to basic swing mechanics, disc problems, arthritis or stress fractures
Golfers Elbow- Golfers elbow is an inflammation, soreness or pain on the inside of the upper arm near the elbow.
Shoulder Pain- Shoulder pain in a golfer might be caused by any of several different underlying conditions, including: rotator cuff tendinitis, or a tear or impingement in the rotator cuff; A-C joint arthritis; or instability in the joint.
DeQuervain’s Tendinitis- This causes pain in the wrist near the base of the thumb, and is caused by an inflammation in the tendons that control the thumb.
Knee Pain- Knee pain in golfers can be caused by any of numerous underlying issues, among them: a torn meniscus; knee arthritis, or kneecap pain. I’m sure everyone has heard about Tiger Woods recent knee injury. Tiger tore his ACL last year but still played with it in a lot of pain. Eventually the pain got so unbearable for Tiger that he needed surgery.
Wrist Impaction Syndrome- Impaction syndromes of the wrist are caused when the bones of the wrist bang into one another due to excess or repetitive movements.
Fracture of Hamate Bone- The hamate bone is a small bone on the pinky side of the wrist. The hamate has a small prominence called the hook, which juts into the palm. The way most golfers grip their clubs puts the butt-end of the club right up against the hook of the hamate during the swing.
Back Pain- The golf swing puts a lot of stress on a golfers back. The back pain may be due to basic swing mechanics, disc problems, arthritis or stress fractures
Golfers Elbow- Golfers elbow is an inflammation, soreness or pain on the inside of the upper arm near the elbow.
Shoulder Pain- Shoulder pain in a golfer might be caused by any of several different underlying conditions, including: rotator cuff tendinitis, or a tear or impingement in the rotator cuff; A-C joint arthritis; or instability in the joint.
DeQuervain’s Tendinitis- This causes pain in the wrist near the base of the thumb, and is caused by an inflammation in the tendons that control the thumb.
Knee Pain- Knee pain in golfers can be caused by any of numerous underlying issues, among them: a torn meniscus; knee arthritis, or kneecap pain. I’m sure everyone has heard about Tiger Woods recent knee injury. Tiger tore his ACL last year but still played with it in a lot of pain. Eventually the pain got so unbearable for Tiger that he needed surgery.
Wrist Impaction Syndrome- Impaction syndromes of the wrist are caused when the bones of the wrist bang into one another due to excess or repetitive movements.
Fracture of Hamate Bone- The hamate bone is a small bone on the pinky side of the wrist. The hamate has a small prominence called the hook, which juts into the palm. The way most golfers grip their clubs puts the butt-end of the club right up against the hook of the hamate during the swing.
I never really though that golf was a sport were an injury could occur. I mean they just hit a ball is what I always thought, but if you really think about it, a golfer puts all their power into a swing which does effect multiple parts of the body. Thanks for the info.!
ReplyDeleteI had no idea how complicated a swing could be, or the many specific parts of the body involved. I also recently heard about Tiger but had no idea he tore his ACL. Usually when I hear about that injury, I picture a runningback getting tackled hard from the side.
ReplyDeleteI didnt no golfers could really get hurt like that, thats crazy! Tiger tore his ACL? well we all know he had a great doctor for that operation, my dads had both ACLs done and he needs to get them operated on again.
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