Zhuo Chen

Background: Physical activity is widely acknowledged as an effective intervention for alleviating premenstrual syndrome (PMS) symptoms. However, the optimal exercise dosage that provides symptom relief without increasing the risk of sports-related injuries remains unclear, particularly in adolescent females. Objectives: This study investigates the epidemiology of PMS and sports injuries among national-level adolescent female badminton athletes to inform training practices that balance symptom relief and injury prevention. Methods: A total of 63 national-level adolescent female badminton players aged 13–18 completed questionnaires assessing medical history related to badminton, premenstrual symptoms (PSQ), and menstrual health. All participants were adolescent females who had experienced menarche. Data were analyzed to identify associations between training parameters, PMS symptoms, and injury prevalence. Results: The analysis showed that 13.8% of female badminton athletes experienced knee and lumbar injury associated with badminton participation. The peak incidence of knee injuries occurred at the age of 15, whereas the age of 17 was a peak period for lumbar injuries. A total of 47 (74.6%) athletes experienced at least one premenstrual symptom. The most common symptoms were anger/irritability and anxiety/tension. The players with premenstrual syndrome showed significantly increased menses time (OR: 1.16, p < 0.05), menstrual days in the past 12 months (OR: 4.06, p < 0.05), and badminton experience period compared with those without (OR: 1.441, p < 0.05). Conclusions: PMS symptoms and sports-related injuries are prevalent among national-level adolescent female badminton athletes. Longer participation history in badminton was associated with a higher prevalence of PMS symptoms. These findings underscore the importance of considering menstrual health alongside injury prevention in the training and health management of adolescent female athletes. Further studies using objective training exposure and clinical assessments are warranted.

Body pain, often considered as an early sign of injury in young players, warrants thorough study. This study aimed to examine the distribution of badminton-related pain and prevalence in pre-adolescent and adolescent badminton players. Profiles of badminton-related pain were surveyed using a questionnaire among 366 pre-adolescent and adolescent badminton players aged 7–12 years. The distribution of badminton-related pain was described, and the pain incidence was calculated. Proportions of pain per 1000-training-hour exposures were the main outcome measures. The analysis considered various age groups (7–8, 9–10, and 11–12 years) and years of badminton experience (≤2, 2–3, and > 3 years). In total, 554 cases of badminton-related pain were reported. The ankle was the most common site, followed by knee, plantar, shoulder, and lower back. The overall pain rate per 1000-training-hour exposure was 3.06. The 11–12-year-old group showed the highest pain rate, significantly greater than the 7–8-year-old group and the 9–10-year-old group. Additionally, the prevalence of pain exhibited an increasing trend with age. Finally, regardless of the age groups, participants with 2–3 years of badminton experience had the highest pain rate. These findings might help inform targeted interventions to reduce the high prevalence of pain in various body regions across pre-adolescent and adolescent badminton players.