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Updated: Jul 1, 2025
Quantitative Magnetic Resonance Imaging of Skeletal Muscle Disease
Published on: December 18, 2016
Shoulder pathologies in CrossFit: a magnetic resonance imaging study of 51 cases
Maria A Bernstorff1, Norman Schumann2, Lisa Schwake3
1Department of Orthopedic and Trauma Surgery, BG University Hospital, Bochum, Germany - maria.bernstorff@gmail.com.
Background:
Recent scientific work shows that the most common injuries in CrossFit© occur in the shoulder joint. This paper aims to provide a review of shoulder pathologies in a young CrossFit© cohort via MRI and clinical examination.
Methods:
A survey was conducted in 13 CrossFit "boxes" in Germany, in which athletes with recurrent shoulder pain could report for a clinical examination and MRI diagnostic. Fifty-one CrossFit athletes with chronic shoulder pain agreed to participate in the study and were then examined physically and by MRI.
Results:
Fifty-one active CrossFit athletes aged 21-45 years (mean 33.7 years, 35 male and 16 female) were recruited. The most frequently detected pathologies were partial lesions of the supraspinatus tendon (N.=25; 49%) and labral lesions (N.=11; 21.6%). The findings also identified partial lesions of the subscapularis tendon (N.=9; 17.6%), pulley lesions (N.=9; 17.6%), and partial lesions of the infraspinatus muscle (N.=2; 3.9%).
Conclusions:
These data demonstrate the need for a specific focus on particular shoulder injuries in CrossFit. Knowledge about the type of shoulder pathologies caused by CrossFit training allows for training-specific adaptations with regard to prevention, as well as a more targeted, sport-specific therapy. This study is the first in the literature to present on structural changes in the shoulders of active CrossFit athletes.
