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Knee Injuries in Elite Level Soccer Players

October 4, 2018 | Surgery
Travis S. Roth, MD, MS ; Daryl C. Osbahr, MD
Author and Disclosure Information

Authors’ Disclosure Statement: The authors report no actual or potential conflict of interest in relation to this article.

Dr. Roth is an Orthopedic Surgery Resident, Orlando Health Orthopedic Institute, Orlando, Florida. Dr. Osbahr is Chief of Sports Medicine and Orthopedic Sports Medicine Fellowship Director, Orlando Health Orthopedic Institute and Arnold Palmer Hospital for Children, Orlando, Florida.

Address correspondence to: Travis S. Roth, MD, MS, Orlando Health Orthopedic Institute, 1222 S. Orange Ave, 5th Floor, Orlando, FL 32806 (tel, 407-649-6878; email, travis.roth@orlandohealth.com).

Travis S. Roth, MD, MS Daryl C. Osbahr, MD . Knee Injuries in Elite Level Soccer Players. Am J Orthop.

October 4, 2018

TAKE-HOME POINTS

  • Soccer is one of the most popular sports in the world and has a high incidence of resultant knee injuries.
  • Significant, identifiable risk factors put soccer players at risk for serious knee injuries, such as ACL ruptures; age, female sex, and position played influence injury susceptibility.
  • ACL injury most commonly occurs via non-contact mechanisms, and female players are at a significantly higher risk of ACL injury than male counterparts.
  • The prevalence of osteoarthritis in retired soccer players is high, underscoring the need to be familiar with meniscal and cartilage repair/restoration techniques and associated outcomes.
  • The FIFA11+ program reduces injury by 30%, with reported relative risk of 0.70 for lower limb injuries, highlighting the significant preventative importance of this warm-up program.

INJURY PREVENTION

Given the breadth and the prevalence of soccer-related injuries, the FIFA11+ program was developed in 2006 as an injury prevention measure (Figure 4). The warm-up program includes 15 structured exercises emphasizing core stabilization, thigh muscle training, proprioception, dynamic stabilization, and plyometric exercises. The routine is believed to be easily executed and effective at preventing the incidence of noncontact injuries.86,87 Recently, Sadigursky and colleagues1 performed a systematic review of randomized clinical trials examining the efficacy of FIFA11+. The authors reported a reduction in injuries by 30% and a relative risk of 0.70 for lower limb injuries, highlighting the significant preventative importance of the program.1 Post-training programs may also be beneficial as it has been shown that performing FIFA11+ both before and after training reduced overall injury rates in male, amateur soccer players.88 Regardless of the prevention program, it is critical that every league, team, medical team, and athlete have a thorough injury prevention strategy to help keep players healthy and not wait until they have instead sustained a significant injury.

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CONCLUSION

Knee injuries are common in soccer, with an alarming number of ACL injuries, as well as other significant pathology. Understanding the unique epidemiology, risk factors, treatment, and injury prevention strategies is critically important in helping medical professionals provide care for all levels of elite soccer players.

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