A study of pre-existing medical conditions in soccer players with groin pain

Toshiki Sugiyama, Yuya Kobayashi, Daiki Takahashi, Daiki Mikoshiba, Rikuto Hakoyama, Shogo Tashiro, Shintaro Yamamuro, Keishi Takahashi, Naoshi Niimura, Takashige Momose
Purpose:

To examine the pre-existing medical conditions of soccer players who developed GP.

Methods:

Seventy-eight soccer players who developed GP between October 2021 and June 2024 were included in the study. The mean age was 15.7 ± 3.9 years (72 males and 6 females). The injured side was the right side in 38 patients, the left side in 36 patients, and bilateral in 4 patients. Pre-existing injuries were defined as those immediately prior to the onset of GP, and the number of patients with pre-existing injuries and diseases were investigated. The patients were classified into two groups: those with pre-existing medical conditions (group A) and those without pre-existing medical conditions (group B). In addition, physical findings via the Doha agreement classification and the number of patients who withdrew from competition were compared between groups. Statistical analysis was performed using the χ-square test, with a significance level of P 0.05.

Results:

Pre-existing disease was observed in 45 patients (57.7%), and the diseases included ankle sprain in 15 patients, lumbar spondylolysis in 8 , patellar ligamentitis in 4 , Osgood-Schlatter disease in 3 , lateral meniscus injury in 3 , hamstring muscle injury in 3 , quadriceps muscle injury in 3 , symptomatic synovial plica of the knee joint in 2 , Shin splint in 2 , medial collateral ligament injury in 1 , and gastrocnemius injury in 1 .

Physical findings showed that pubic-related GP was significantly more common in group A (15 patients, 33.3%) than in group B (5 patients, 15.1%). There were no significant differences in other physical findings between the two groups.

There were 26 (57.8%) patients in Group A and 22 (66.7%) in Group B who withdrew from competition. There were no significant differences between the two groups in terms of the number of patients who withdrew from competition.

Conclusion(s):

Patients with pre-existing injuries may have had inadequate recovery of physical function after injury. Physical dysfunction involving the lower extremities, lumbar spine, and pelvic girdle may have increased stress on the pubic perineum.

Implications:

Physical therapy for GPs should include the assessment and treatment of physical function, including pre-existing medical conditions.

Funding acknowledgements:
None.
Keywords:
Groin pain
pre-existing medical conditions
Physical function
Primary topic:
Sport and sports injuries
Second topic:
Musculoskeletal: lower limb
Third topic:
Orthopaedics
Did this work require ethics approval?:
Yes
Name the institution and ethics committee that approved your work:
Momose Orthopedic and Sports Clinic
Provide the ethics approval number:
0001
Has any of this material been/due to be published or presented at another national or international conference prior to the World Physiotherapy Congress 2025?:
No

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