The sport of pickleball has had explosive growth over the last 10 years. About nine million people now play in the U.S. In Bloomington-Normal, parks and rec departments have added a lot of courts, and a private group is buildingan indoor pickleball facility.
But along with the rise in the number of players, there has been huge increase in the number of injuries.
One researcher projected there were more than 19,000 pickleball injuries in the U.S. in 2022. Another analysis published in 2021 in Injury Epidemiology estimated there were nearly 29,000 pickleball injuries from 2010 to 2019.
Dr. Joseph Newcomer is an orthopedic surgeon at Carle McLean County Orthopedics. He started seeing pickleball injuries more than a decade ago. Over time, the nature of those mishaps has changed.
One study suggests older people make up a disproportionate share of pickleball injuries, though that is changing as the sport becomes more popular with younger age groups.
Newcomer said it's better for those who do get injured to seek same-day treatment. Injuries can worsen if someone plays through them, or tries to compensate and causes an injury in another part of the body.
“As we're seeing more and more younger participants in pickleball, we've moved from the injuries that were typical for the older participant of fractures or chronic tendinopathies, to knee injuries and sudden acceleration and deceleration injuries," said Newcomer. "I've seen cartilage injuries. I've seen Achilles tendon ruptures. We’ve seen acute shoulder issues and problems with rotator cuffs.”
In his own family, Newcomer said his wife had an injury caused by a fall, and she was playing for fun and not in an overly competitive way.
He said it’s likely pickleball is no more risky than other sports, but the perception that it is less risky for injury is false.
“Certainly, in the older population, I think people fall into this false sense of security with pickleball. I think the court is a lot smaller. They see a big Wiffle Ball. People feel like it's a sport they can begin without any proper training or getting into shape,” said Newcomer. “Pickleball can lend itself to injuries because people aren't necessarily thinking about listening to their bodies.”
He said people often play for hours and rotate in and out, noting that can increase the chance of repetitive motion injuries.
“The first group of injuries we used to see were usually wrist related, a lot of falls. People were just getting into the sport. We went from the fractures to now we're seeing chronic issues. We're seeing tendonitis, tendinopathy. Some people are getting tennis elbow, gripping the racket too tight for too long a period of time. The injuries are evolving,” said Newcomer.
He thinks people are getting smarter about their limitations on the court because fractures have declined. But competition can inhibit common sense.
“For a lot of people, it's hard to turn that switch off,” said Newcomer, adding injuries will happen no matter what. Proper warm-ups can limit that.
“How many times do you see people just going right out and start hitting the ball around? That's not a proper warm-up. A warm stretch, to get the tendons out to length is really important,” said Newcomer.
Exercises tailored to the kinds of movements pickleball requires also can reduce problems.
“Anybody older than 40, at this point really should spend time working on exercises that promote balance ... Believe it or not yoga, as well as Pilates, there are some great poses that promote balance, heel-to-toe walking, single leg stance, and balancing on uneven surfaces,” said Newcomer.
And exercises that promote the core, strengthening the lower extremities, are extremely important, he said.
“Your quadriceps and your hamstrings, making sure they're in condition, but also working on back stretching and back exercises and lower abdominal core exercises,” said Newcomer.
Like other racquet sports, pickleball can require sudden changes in direction that puts even younger players at risk of injury.
“It's hard to get joints prepared for that," said Newcomer. "When we get a little bit older and we start having arthritic changes in our joints, it's even more imperative we do activities that would challenge that, to get the biofeedback and the tendinopathy and the joints able to change direction.”
Even when not injured, he said, rest and recovery matter a lot.
“As we age, we lose water. And as we lose water, tissues become more brittle. Hydration is really, really important. When you're done participating for a couple of hours, it's important to make sure that you maintain hydration, you get the proper rest. A cool-down stretch can also be quite helpful,” said Newcomer.
