Why the study?
Most research on the psychological consequences of sports injuries has focused on adults, leaving outcomes in youth athletes less understood.
Highlights the significant but under-researched psychosocial consequences of sports injuries in adolescent athletes to guide clinical management and future research.
May warrant psychosocial screening in youth athlete rehab; leaves open optimal interventions to mitigate mental health risks.
Adolescence represents a time of tremendous physical, social, and emotional growth, and sport participation can provide significant mental health benefits for young athletes. Injuries are unfortunately common in sports and represent a threat to the short- and long-term health of athletes. While injury management has typically revolved around the minimization of pain and the restoration of physical function, emerging evidence suggests that the psychological consequences of injury may be significant, potentially jeopardizing return to play, increasing subsequent reinjury risk, and even leading to the development of mental health disorders. The majority of this research has been conducted in adult athletes and less is known about outcomes in youth athletes following injury. This review examines what is known about the psychosocial impact of sports injuries in youth athletes to identify areas of future research and to aid clinicians in the management of this population.
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Haraldsdóttir et al. (2021) studied this question.
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