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Instr Course Lect 2012 ;61:499-511

Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Texas Scottish Rite Hospital for Children, Dallas, TX, USA.

As the number of young people involved in sports activities increases, acute and chronic back pain has become more common. With a careful medical history and physical examination, along with the judicious use of imaging modalities, the causes of back pain can be correctly diagnosed and treated so that young athletes can quickly return to sports participation. Although most back pain in these young patients is muscular in origin, findings that should trigger increased concern include night pain, marked hamstring tightness, pain with lumbar spine hyperextension, or any neurologic finding. Read More

Am J Sports Med 2011 Mar 10;39(3):632-6. Epub 2011 Jan 10.

Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, 676 N St Clair Street, Chicago, IL 60611, USA.

Background: There is a paucity of evidence demonstrating clinical outcomes of high-end athletes sustaining a treatment for lumbar disk herniation.

Purpose: To evaluate the ability of a National Football League lineman to return to play after lumbar diskectomy.

Study Design: Case series; Level of evidence, 4. Read More

Postgrad Med 1983 Dec;74(6):209-12, 213, 217

Low back pain is a common complaint of athletes, and accurate diagnosis is essential, since many causes of back problems can lead to disability. If the obvious mechanical causes, such as muscle strain, "kissing spines," and leg-length inequality, have been ruled out, the more serious sources of low back pain, such as disk herniation, Scheuermann's disease (swimmer's back), compression fractures of the vertebral body, and stress fractures of the posterior elements, should be considered. Treatment goals for all these disorders include pain relief and prevention of further injury. Read More