Acute elbow injuries in the National Football League

We performed a retrospective review to evaluate acute medial collateral lig ament injuries of the elbow in professional football players From 1991 to 1 996 (5 seasons). There were 5 acute medial collateral ligament injuries in 4 players ii player with bilateral involvement). All injuries occurred with the hand planted on the playing surface while a valgus or hyperextension f orce was applied to the elbow. There were 2 centers, both involved with lon g-snapping situations, I running back, and quarterback. All elbows had valg us instability on physical examination, Despite this instability all player s were able to function without operative reconstruction of the medial coll ateral ligament. No evidence of valgus instability was seen at the time of Follow-up (average, 3.4 years). Next, we reviewed all acute elbow injuries in the National Football league from the same 5-season period. Ninety-one a cute elbow injuries were reviewed. Overall, there were 70 (76.9%) elbow spr ains, 16 (17.6%) dislocation/ subluxation patterns, 4 (4.4%) fractures, and 1 (1.1%) miscellaneous injury Review of the acute elbow sprains revealed 3 9 (55.7%) hyperextension injuries, 14 (20%) medial collateral ligament inju ries, 2 (2.9%) lateral collateral ligament sprains, and 15 (21.4%) nonspeci fic sprains. The epidemiology of the 14 medial collateral ligament injuries was studied in more detail. The 2 most common mechanisms of injury were bl ocking at the line of scrimmage (50%) and the application of a valgus force with the hand planted on the playing surface (29%). There were 8 linemen, 4 receivers, 1 running back, and 1 quarterback. All injuries were managed w ith nonoperative treatment. The average time lost was 0.64 games (range, 0 to 4). We report 19 acute medial collateral ligament injuries of the elbow in elite football players, 2 of whom are considered overhead throwing athle tes, who were able to function at a competitive level without surgical repa ir or reconstruction, in contrast to baseball players, in whom the mechanic s and demands may differ.