Epidemiology and risk factors of wrist pain and injury in adolescent artistic gymnasts: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Key Points

1. Adolescent artistic gymnasts demonstrate a high prevalence of acute and chronic wrist pain and wrist injury. Wrist pain occurs in 53% of adolescent artistic gymnasts, with acute and chronic wrist injuries occurring in 34% and 36% respectively.

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BACKGROUND & OBJECTIVE

Gymnasts have a high incidence of injuries, with previous reports showing rates up to 9 per 1000 athlete-exposures (1). Frequently employed as a weightbearing joint, the hyperextended wrist may experience loads up to twice the gymnast’s body weight and at loading rates that exceed 16 times one’s weight per second (2). Wrist injuries are prevalent, making the wrist the most frequently injured area in male gymnasts and the sixth most injured in their female counterparts (3).

The purpose of this study was to present the prevalence and incidence of wrist pain and other findings associated with wrist injury in the adolescent artistic gymnast and to identify and evaluate the risk factors that may contribute to its development.

Frequently employed as a weightbearing joint, the hyperextended wrist may experience loads up to twice the gymnast’s body weight and at loading rates that exceed 16 times one’s weight per second.

Repeatedly exposing the wrist to high-impact loads during the vulnerable adolescent growth spurt period may explain the relationship between age and gymnasts’ increased risk for wrist pain.

METHODS

• A literature search was conducted using MEDLINE, EMBASE, CINAHL, Cochrane, and SPORTDiscus. Inclusion criteria were observational studies that enrolled an adolescent (1 of the following outcomes: prevalence, incidence, and/or risk factors for wrist pain, acute and/or chronic injuries, or positive

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