Abstract
Abstract
Purpose of Review
The exponential growth of women participating in competitive sports throughout the years was made possible through several initiatives by the International Olympic Committee and the passage and implementation of Title IX as a federal law in the United States. However, this positive trend towards gender equity in sports has not transpired for women in medicine, especially in fields that care for elite athletes. This current review will discuss specific areas that can be tailored to help female athletes prevent injuries and optimize their athletic performance. We will also highlight how increased female team physician representation in sports may help optimize care for female athletes.
Recent Findings
Female athletes are considered high risk for certain conditions such as ACL tears, patellofemoral pain syndrome, bone stress injuries, sport-related concussions, and sexual violence in sport. Addressing factors specific to female athletes has been found to be valuable in preventing injuries. Strength and conditioning can optimize athletic performance but remains underutilized among female athletes. Although diversity in healthcare workforce has been found to be beneficial for multiple reasons, women remain underrepresented in sports medicine. Increasing female team physician representation may positively impact care for female athletes.
Summary
Team physicians must understand the physiologic, biomechanical, and anatomic factors that are unique to female athletes in order to tailor injury prevention programs and optimize their athletic performance. Advocating for gender equity in sports medicine to advance representation of women in the field will increase workforce diversity and promote excellence in sports medicine care.
Publisher
Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Subject
Orthopedics and Sports Medicine
Reference90 articles.
1. International Olympic Committee. 2019. Key dates in the history of women in the Olympic Movement. Int Olympic Comm. [cited 2020 Dec 1] Available from: https://www.olympic.org/women-in-sport/background/key-dates.
2. Bell R. Academy USS. A history of women in sport prior to title IX. Sport J. 2008;22:1543–9518. https://thesportjournal.org/article/a-history-of-women-in-sport-prior-to-title-ix/.
3. Gregg EA, Gregg VH. Women in sport: historical perspectives. Clin Sports Med. 2017;36(4):603–10. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.csm.2017.05.001.
4. International Olympic Committee. 2019. Promotion of women in sports through time. International Olympic 741 Committee. [cited 2020 Dec 1] Available from: https://www.olympic.org/women-in-sport/background. Accessed December 1, 2020.
5. •• O’Reilly OC, Day MA, Cates WT, Baron JE, Glass NA, Westermann RW. Female team physician representation in professional and collegiate athletics. Am J Sports Med. 2020;48:739–43. https://doi.org/10.1177/0363546519897039Presents the current state of women in the team physician workforce.
Cited by
16 articles.
订阅此论文施引文献
订阅此论文施引文献，注册后可以免费订阅5篇论文的施引文献，订阅后可以查看论文全部施引文献