Key result
Female boxing was associated with a low incidence of injuries, with mild injuries occurring in 1.8% of post-match checks and no specific breast or reproductive system diseases observed.
Why the study?
Does female boxing result in significant injuries or specific health problems?
Cross-Sectional (n=61)
Yes
Does female boxing result in significant injuries or specific health problems?
Female boxing appears to be a safe sport with a very low incidence of events requiring hospitalization and no specific diseases observed in the breast or reproductive system.
Supports safety of female boxing; leaves open need for larger prospective studies before guiding practice.
OBJECTIVE: To collect medical data on women's boxing. DESIGN: Cross-sectional and longitudinal study. SETTING: Medical examinations requested by Italian laws. PARTICIPANTS: A retrospective study was conducted on all female boxing competitions in Italy from April 2001 to December 2007. Sixty-one amateur female boxers were evaluated longitudinally. INTERVENTIONS: (1) Retrospective study: All pre-/postmatch medical reports were analysed. (2) Prospective study: Breast, gynaecologic, brain, eyes, ear, nose and throat examinations were carried out. MAIN OUTCOME MEASUREMENTS: (1) Retrospective study: Any injury assessed before/after the match. (2) Prospective study: Health problems which could be related to boxing activity. RESULTS: (1) Retrospective study: Data from 5600 examinations were collected. Precompetition, a medical problem was recorded in three athletes (one conjunctiva hyperemia, one zygomatic bruise, one eyelid haematoma). Post competition, 51/2800 medical checks showed mild common injuries, such as soft tissue facial lesions, epistaxis and hand-wrist problems. Only one concussion was recorded with hospitalisation (for a thorough evaluation). Another athlete was hospitalised for a nasal fracture. (2) Prospective study: Two fibroadenomas, three ovarian cysts and one intramural uterine myoma were diagnosed. In four boxers, non-specific electroencephalographic abnormalities were detected, however, with a normal brain MRI in three (the fourth is still waiting for the radiologic procedure). Nasal septum deviation was common (42.6%) and a transmissive hypoacusia was observed in two athletes. No major eye injuries were reported. CONCLUSIONS: Female boxing seems to be a safe sport with a very low incidence of events requiring hospitalisation. No specific diseases in female boxers could be observed, in particular regarding the breast and reproductive system.
No takes yet. Share an insight, caveat, or question.
Bianco et al. (2009) conducted a cross-sectional in Female boxing (n=61). Boxing was evaluated on Any injury assessed before/after the match and health problems related to boxing activity. Female boxing was associated with a low incidence of injuries, with mild injuries occurring in 1.8% of post-match checks and no specific breast or reproductive system diseases observed.
Synapse has enriched 5 closely related papers on similar clinical questions. Consider them for comparative context: