Learn More About the Female Athlete Triad to Promote Prevention for Female Adolescent Athletes

First identified in 1992, the so-called Female Athlete Triad gained early recognition from the American College of Sports Medicine. The Female Athlete Triad is a term used to describe the combined deleterious impact of three different and inter-related conditions: eating disorders, menstrual irregularities and osteoporosis. The conditions associated with this medical condition may cause serious health consequences.

The Female Athlete Triad poses short and long term risks to young athletic women. Short and longer term negative health effects may include an increased risk of stress fractures, fertility problems, bone and dental issues, psychological trauma, and more.

Research suggests that certain sports activities may have a higher prevalence of the Female Athlete Triad, including:

1. Sports that may emphasize a particular slender physique while requiring participants to wear clothing that is fitted and/or revealing
2. Endurance sports
3. Sports with categories that distinguish participants by weight

Some of the deleterious behavior associated with the Female Athlete Triad includes engaging in disordered eating patterns sometimes characterized as anorexia nervosa or bulimia nervosa. Disordered eating patterns may involve severely restricting caloric intake or cycles of binging and purging.

Extreme efforts to control weight and improve athletic performance often have the opposite effect, leading instead to mental and physical fatigue, emotional stress and an overall decline in muscle mass. This destructive combination can negatively impact overall physical performance and psychological well-being.

Another common outcome of this condition includes irregular menstrual cycles which may involve menstrual cessation, including amenorrhea. This condition results in a reduction of estrogen which can hinder calcium absorption and bone development. In serious cases, it can lead to osteoporosis or bones that are weakened.
The Female Athlete Triad may predispose athletes to stress fractures and it may be beneficial for a physician like an orthopedic doctor to screen for this during the evaluation of stress fractures in adolescent females engaged in athletics.

Stress fractures are a common overuse injury that happen from repetitive loading that hinders the body's capability of healing. While individuals participating in a wide range of sports may experience a stress fracture, females are more likely than males to experience this common overuse injury.

Increasing awareness about the warning signs and risks among parents, athletes, coaches, sports medicine physicians and other people involved in girls adolescent sports may be beneficial.

Treatment for the Female Athlete Triad can sometimes be complicated and the earlier this condition is identified and treated, the better. A focus on health education and prevention is ideal so female athletes do not have to suffer from this destructive condition.

Good sources for more information about the Female Athlete Triad include research by Troy, Hoch and Stavrakos (2006) and Hoch et al. (2009).

Dr. Stacie L. Grossfeld is a board certified Orthopaedic Surgeon practicing in Louisville, Kentucky. She graduated from the University of Louisville School of Medicine, and completed a fellowship in Sports Medicine at the Fowler-Kennedy Sports Medicine Center. Dr. Grossfeld currently works as a louisville orthopedic surgeon in private practice at Orthopaedic Specialists. Dr. Grossfeld also serves as a clinical instructor in the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery at the University of Louisville. Her special interests are in knee and shoulder reconstruction and sports medicine.

For more information about Dr. Grossfeld and her medical practice Orthopaedic Specialists, call 502-212-2663.

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