Women who play pickleball face more dangers than men.

Since the pickleball movement exploded, many women have been introduced to the feeling of practicing and competing in a fast-paced competitive sport for the first time.

More and more women are playing pickleball - Photo: GI

There are many reasons why women approach pickleball, the most common of which is... it's easy to play. But is that really the case?

While it may seem gentle and approachable, the reality is that medical studies show that women who play pickleball are at greater risk of injury than men, and it is even more important to be cautious if playing without proper preparation.

Here is a detailed analysis from the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons.

Differences in anatomy and physiology of movement

Women and men have different musculoskeletal structures by nature, which leads to women often having more difficulty when playing competitive sports.

Specifically, women's pelvises are wider, the distance between the two femurs is larger, sometimes leading to a larger femoral-tibia angle ("Q angle"), causing the knee to bear more force when stepping sideways, turning or changing direction suddenly.

Sports studies show that female athletes are at higher risk of anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury than men due to joint structure and large range of motion.

In pickleball, movements typically involve small jumps, changes of direction, sidesteps, and sudden braking. When women step onto the court without being familiar with the technique, it is easy to miss a step, sprain an ankle, or twist a knee.

Furthermore, the muscles around the hips and thighs of women are often less developed than men (if not exercised), so the joints are less "supported" when subjected to dynamic forces.

For example, a review study found that in pickleball, women had a fracture rate three times higher than men.

Differences in bone density and tendon-muscle strength

The second factor is the “quality” of bone and tendon-muscle tissue. After menopause, women experience a rapid decrease in bone mineral density (BMD), leading to osteoporosis, which makes them more susceptible to fractures when falling or experiencing trauma.

Female athletes are more susceptible to stress fractures than men – reasons include lower bone density, smaller bone structure, and sometimes nutritional or hormonal deficiencies.

Middle-aged women are more susceptible to injury - Photo: GI

In the context of pickleball, although it is considered a “light sport”, landing, sliding sideways, or falling on a hard court is still entirely possible.

A survey from 2002-2022 in the US said the number of pickleball-related fractures increased 90-fold; in particular, “upper extremity fractures (hand, wrist) occurred mainly in women over 65 years old,” according to data from the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (AAOS).

In short, middle-aged women have less muscle mass and tendons that can "support" force, and their bones are more vulnerable, so when playing with sudden movements of jumping, turning, and changing direction, they are more susceptible to serious injury or broken bones than men.

Lack of basic sports foundation

Finally, the most important factor that leads to danger for women entering the pickleball field is that many lack a basic sports foundation.

For players coming from tennis or table tennis, this factor is certainly not present. But there is a large proportion of women on the pickleball court who have never played competitive sports before.

Most of them initially just go out for fun with friends, or "follow the trend", and then gradually become attracted to this sport. The "easy to play" feeling of pickleball is the "trap".

Women often play pickleball because it's a trend - Photo: XQ

According to orthopedic specialist Christopher Wu (USA): “The people I see injured while playing pickleball are usually between 30 and 50 years old, previously sedentary, then suddenly playing for many hours at a time. Their bodies are not used to that amount of movement and that increases the risk of injury.”

Dr. Wu said a small survey of his patients showed that most of them had less than five years of experience playing competitive sports.

This is what causes women - who have a high participation rate in the beginner group - to often have incorrect posture, insufficient warm-up, incorrect footwork, incorrect landing, or play continuously for many hours when their bodies are not used to it.

As a result, they often suffer from tendonitis, muscle strains, sprains, and even broken bones when falling.

HUY DANG

Source: https://tuoitre.vn/phu-nu-choi-pickleball-gap-nhieu-hiem-hoa-hon-nam-gioi-20251018204340376.htm