New tendencies in risk factors for soft tissue injuries: Genetic Biomakers

Abstract

Soft tissue injuries (in muscles, tendons and ligaments) are a key factor in “talent selection” due to their great importance in high-level sports. Few studies have focused on the cause or etiology of soft tissue injuries, and exhaustive epidemiological studies¹ are the source of our current knowledge of injurability. To date, no scientific evidence has conclusively identified potential risk factors to explain interprofessional injurability or interindividual variability despite similar programs of injury prevention. At present, although epidemiological studies are the best available tools for identifying the type of injury and injurability index^1-4, they do not allow us to establish a direct relation between an injury and its etiology, since there is no scientific evidence of risk factors to explain the predisposition of an individual to suffer an injury, the origin of the injury, or even the estimated recovery time. Depending on the kind of sport, muscle injuries represent 10-55% of all injuries³ suffered by athletes. In spite of the fact that small injuries can be completely cured, recovery from more serious muscle injuries causes a scarring in the muscle tissue that decreases muscle function and can lead to muscle contractions and chronic pain².