PERCEPTION OF MUSCULOSKELETAL PAIN IN ATHLETES

Abstract

Given the importance that coaches give to algia in all its manifestations, we aim to evaluate the
perception of pain in young athletes. The study was conducted on 118 both male and female athletes who
completed a questionnaire collecting information on the perception of musculoskeletal algia along with the main factors that may influence algia sensitivity. The questionnaire gathered complex information on age, the particular sport they practiced, age when they started practicing it, total number of weekly training sessions, number of competitions attended by the subject, number of injuries suffered, their location, if hospitalization was needed, duration of recovery, the possibility the subject ever had to give up sports and / or suffered from overtraining syndrome, their participation to psychological training programs, their assessment of the intensity of pain both at rest and during exercise, during and immediately after competitions (using a scale from 1 to 10, with 1 corresponding to minimum pain and 10 to maximum), the use of supplements. The results show that the highest intensity of musculoskeletal pain is recorded immediately after sustained physical effort and the lowest during sports games, leading to the conclusion that this discrepancy could be caused by a significant discharge of endogenous opioids during games. On the other hand, plasma cortisol imbalances, the use of analgesics or supplements do not significantly affect the perception of pain. The factors contributing to the increased algia perception are the athlete’s gender, the high number of weekly workouts, the duration of the athlete’s sports career, the number of major injuries he/she suffered.
Key words: muscular algia, athletes.