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Imaging of Triathlon Injuries

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Imaging in Sports-Specific Musculoskeletal Injuries

Abstract

Triathlon is a sport that features swimming, cycling, and running. In recent years there has been massive growth in the sport. It is usually an individual event, but occasionally team triathlons are held. The sport is relatively safe and offers many health benefits, including promoting a healthy lifestyle. The theory that multiple disciplines would lead to a decrease in the injury rate was recently disproved, with numerous studies demonstrating the opposite. The majority of injuries are due to overuse or poor technique. Reasons postulated are that triathletes in general train for a longer total amount of time. Triathletes also tend to have poorer techniques when compared to single-sport athletes. It is reported that 90 % of triathletes will suffer from an acute or overuse injury per year. Running accounts for most of the injuries and swimming the least. Common injuries include patellofemoral stress syndrome, iliotibial band friction syndrome, stress fractures, medial tibial stress syndrome, and osteitis pubis. Rarer but interesting conditions include snapping hip syndrome, cyclist’s nodule, popliteal artery entrapment syndrome, cystic adventitial disease, and sural nerve entrapment. Triathlon injuries are often subtle and require an in-depth knowledge of the type of injuries sustained. This, together with a sound imaging approach, will enable the radiologist to arrive at an accurate diagnosis and play an integral part in the correct management and rapid recovery of both the professional and amateur triathlete.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Radiology Suites, Medi-Clinic Vergelegen, Drs Van Wageningen and Partners, Somerset West, South Africa

    Richard de Villiers MBChB, MMed, MD

  2. Radiology Suites, Medi-Clinic Vergelegen, Drs Van Wageningen and Partners Inc, Somerset West, South Africa

    Shaun Scheepers MBChB, FC RadD, MMed RadD

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  1. Richard de Villiers MBChB, MMed, MD
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  2. Shaun Scheepers MBChB, FC RadD, MMed RadD
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Correspondence to Richard de Villiers MBChB, MMed, MD .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Radiology, Boston University School of Medicine , Boston, Massachusetts, USA

    Ali Guermazi

  2. Department of Radiology, Boston University School of Medicine , Boston, Massachusetts, USA

    Frank W. Roemer

  3. Department of Radiology, Boston University School of Medicine , Boston, Massachusetts, USA

    Michel D. Crema

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de Villiers, R., Scheepers, S. (2016). Imaging of Triathlon Injuries. In: Guermazi, A., Roemer, F., Crema, M. (eds) Imaging in Sports-Specific Musculoskeletal Injuries. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-14307-1_21

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-14307-1_21

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

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