| Injury | Definition | Mechanism | Common sites | Sports |
| Muscle or tendon strain (stretching or tearing) | Muscle is tissue composed of bundles of specialised cells that when stimulated by nerve impulses contract and produce movement. A tendon is a tough, fibrous cord of tissue that connects muscle to bone. | Acute injury often due to a forceful muscle contraction | Hamstring or quadriceps muscles | Sports that require quick forceful muscle contractions such as sprinting. |
| Ligament sprain (stretching or tearing) | A ligament is a band of fibrous tissue that connects 2 or more bones at a joint and prevents excessive movement of the joint. | Acute injury which occurs when a joint is forced into an unnatural position | Knee and Ankle | Sports that involve twisting of the knee or ankle or quickly stopping and then starting again such as soccer, basketball, hockey or rugby. |
| Spondylolysis (defect or fracture in the bony structures of the spine) | Overuse injury | Lower back | Sports that require repetitive extension and hyperextension of the lower back such as ballet, gymnastics, diving and bowling (cricket). | |
| Avulsion fracture (break) | An avulsion fracture is when a piece of bone is fractured and pulled away from the rest of the bone at the site of the tendon or ligament attachment | Acute injury | Hip, foot and upper arm bones | Sports that require forceful kicking, running and jumping as well as sports that require throwing of implements such as javelin or discus. |
References
1. Brukner, P. and Khan, K. (2009). Clinical sports medicine (3rd ed.). Sydney: McGraw-Hill.
2. Peterson, L. and Renström, P. (2001). Sports injuries: Their prevention and treatment (3rd ed.). Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics.
3. Prentice, W.E. (2010). Essentials of athletic injury management (8th ed.). New York: McGraw-Hill.