Women’s hormones may up knee injuries

Female athletes do tend to have more knee injuries than their male counterparts, but doctors and researchers chalked that down to the female anatomy – women are build differently than men. But now, there are findings that show it may be more than just the way they’re built.

According to an article in the Canadian newspaper The Globe and Mail , Hormones, knee injuries linked , “Darren Stefanyshyn, a professor of kinesiology at the University of Calgary, and his team of researchers have found knee joint laxity, or looseness, which can make athletes more prone to injury, is influenced by phases in the menstrual cycle.”

If this is a factor, it adds to the other anatomical differences that contribute to anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injuries. The ACL plays a large role in keeping the ankle stable. It is smaller in women and because a woman’s body build is different (wider pelvis, wider hips that change the angle of the leg bones), this all contributes to a different type of pressure.

Women even have a different way of running and landing on their foot, according to the Globe and Mail article. It says, “While women will land on a straight leg after jumping, men are more apt to bend their knees to absorb shock. And when running, women collapse their knees inward.”

This new finding that the menstrual cycle may influence the strength and flexibility of the knee may help prevent more injuries.

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