Injury In Tennis Essay

Tennis is a highly competitive sport with participation in over 200 countries throughout the world. It is a non-contact racquet sport which requires aspects such as strength, power, speed, coordination and agility. Like any sport, tennis places specific demands on the body which can predispose any player to injury. These demands placed on the body result in injuries specific to the game. It is said by Pluim et al (2006) that although many injuries that occur in tennis are common in other sports, tennis has its own unique profile of injuries. (1) Injuries such as lateral ankle sprains, calf strains, lower back pain, tennis toe, shoulder impingement, lateral epicondylitis (tennis elbow), ulnar collateral ligament tears and wrist strains are all
It is a painful condition affecting the origin of the forearm extensor muscles. It is caused by the overuse of the extensor carpi radialis brevis (ECRB) muscle during different tennis strokes, particularly the backhand stroke. The repetitive use of the ECRB muscle during the backhand strokes leads to micro-tearing of the tendinous structure at its origin (as seen in figure 1). It is characterized by a burning pain over the lateral aspect which is made worse by gripping the racket, impacting the ball and extension of the wrist. FIGURE 1
According to Ellenbecker et al (2009) the reported injury rates for tennis elbow were high ranging from 37-57% in recreational and professional players, most of which are over the age of 30. (3) Prevalence rate of tennis elbow is quite the same for both males and females throughout various studies. Smedt et al (2007) suggested that this injury commonly affects novice players rather than professionals. (4) There are many biomechanical factors which lead to this injury such as age, level of play, experience of player and muscle imbalances. In this essay, however, I will discuss how poor technique and equipment used can cause this type of