Abstract des Autors

The differential diagnosis of pelvic pain and possible injury in the female athlete is quite broad and must include gastrointestinal and genitourinary aetiologies, as well as musculoskeletal injuries. These considerations reflect the anatomical complexity of the female pelvis. The pelvic bones house the lower gastrointestinal and genitourinary viscery and transmit stress from the lower extremities to the upper body. The innervation of the pelvic structures also complicates evaluation and diagnosis when somatic and visceral afferent information affects the athlete's interpreation of pain. An algorithmic approach can facilitate evaluation and rehabilitation of pelvic injuries in the female athlete in the context of previously described mechanisms of musculoskeletal injury. Verf.-Referat