Stress fractures in military recruits:​ a prospective study showing an unusually high incidence

Milgrom, C.; Giladi, M.; Stein, M.; Kashtan, H.; Margulies, J. Y.; Chisin, R.; Steinberg, R.; Aharonson, Z.

Affiliations

¹Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Hadassah University Hospital, P0 Box 12000, Em Kerem, 91 120 Jerusalem, Israel

²Department of Internal Medicine, Tel-Aviv Medical Centre. Ichilov Hospital, Tel-Aviv 64239, Israel

³Israel Defence Forces, Medical Corps, Israel, Military POB 02149

⁴Department of Surgery, Tel-Aviv Medical Centre, Ichilov Hospital, Tel-Aviv 64239, Israel

⁵Department of Nuclear Medicine, Hadassah University Hospital, P0 Box 12000, Em Kerem, 91 120 Jerusalem, Israel

⁶Osteoporosis Institute, Jerusalem, Israel

Abstract

In a prospective study of 295 male Israeli military recruits a 31% incidence of stress fractures was found. Eighty per cent of the fractures were in the tibial or femoral shaft, while only 8% occurred in the tarsus and metatarsus. Sixty-nine per cent of the femoral stress fractures were asymptomatic, but only 8% of those in the tibia. Even asymptomatic stress fractures do, however, need to be treated. Possible explanations for the unusually high incidence of stress fractures in this study are discussed.

Links

DOI: 10.1302/0301-620X.67B5.4055871

PubMed: 4055871

WoS: A1985AUK9000011

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