Background: Recently, structured training programs for sports injury prevention (“The 11” and “The 11+”) have been validated in soccer. The FIFA 11+ program has not been evaluated in basketball. Hypothesis: The FIFA 11+ program is effective in reducing the rates of injury in male basketball players. Study Design: Randomized controlled trial; Level of evidence, 1. Methods: The authors randomized 11 teams of the same club. Seven teams were allocated to the intervention group (80 players; mean [SD] age 13.5 [2.3] years), and 4 teams were allocated to the control group (41 players; mean [SD] age 15.2 [4.6] years). The authors conducted an injury surveillance program during a 9-month season. The primary outcome was any injury to the athletes. The secondary outcome was any injury to the lower extremity (foot, ankle, lower leg, knee, thigh, groin, and hip). They included an analysis of the type of exposure (match or training), injury location in the body, and type of injury (acute or overuse). Results: During the 9-month season, 23 (19%) of the 121 players included in the study sustained a total of 31 injuries (14 in the intervention group and 17 in the control group). In the intervention group, injury rates per 1000 athlete-exposures were lower than those in the control group, with statistical significance, for overall injuries (0.95 vs 2.16; P = .0004), training injuries (0.14 vs 0.76; P = .007), lower extremity injuries (0.68 vs 1.4; P = .022), acute injuries (0.61 vs 1.91; P < .0001), and severe injuries (0 vs 0.51; P = .004). The intervention group also had statistically significant lower injury rates for trunk (0.07 vs 0.51; P = .013), leg (0 vs 0.38; P = .007), and hip and groin (0 vs 0.25; P = .023) compared with the control group. There was no statistically significant difference in match injuries, knee injuries, ankle injuries, and overuse injuries between 2 groups. The most frequent acute injury diagnoses were ligament sprains (0.41 and 0.38 in the intervention and control groups, respectively; P < .006) and contractures (0.76 and 0.07 in the control and intervention groups, respectively; P < .003). Conclusion: The FIFA 11+ warm-up program is effective in reducing the rates of injuries in elite male basketball players.

Minimally invasive techniques for hallux valgus correction include arthroscopy, percutaneous and minimum incision surgery. In the last few decades, several techniques have been increasingly used. We performed a comprehensive search of CINAHL, Embase, Medline, HealthSTAR and the Cochrane Central Registry of Controlled Trials, from inception of the database to 4 January 2010, using various combinations of the keywords terms ‘Bosch’, ‘PDO’, ‘percutaneous distal osteotomy’, ‘SERI’, ‘percutaneous’, ‘minimal incision’, ‘minimum incision’, ‘minimally invasive’, ‘less invasive’, ‘mini-invasive’, ‘hallux valgus’, ‘bunion’, ‘surgery’, ‘arthroscopy’, ‘metatarsal’ ‘forefoot’. Only articles published in peer reviewed journals were included in this systematic review. Several new techniques are available for minimally invasive correction of the hallux valgus. Minimally invasive correction of the hallux valgus may provide better outcome for patients who would not recover well from traditional open approaches, because of decreasing recovery and rehabilitation times, as surgical exposure and deep tissue dissection are smaller and gentler to the soft tissues. Data are lacking to allow definitive conclusions on the use of these techniques for routine management of patients with hallux valgus. Given the limitations of the current case series, especially the extensive clinical heterogeneity, it is not possible to determine clear recommendations regarding the systematic use of minimally invasive surgery for hallux valgus correction, even though preliminary results are encouraging. Studies of higher levels of evidence, concentrating on large adequately powered randomized trials, should be conducted to help answer these questions.

This review explores the scientific evidence for clinical, functional and imaging outcomes after surgical management of Femoroacetabular Impingement (FAI) syndrome, and assesses the methodological quality of the published literature reporting this issue. The medical literature databases of Pubmed, Medline, Ovid, Google Scholar and Embase were searched for articles published in English, Spanish, French and Italian, using a combination of the keywords ‘femoro-acetabular impingement syndrome’, ‘postoperative outcomes’, ‘open surgery’, and ‘arthroscopic management’. To address three main questions, we extracted data on demographic features, operative techniques, postoperative rehabilitation regimens, imaging features, pre and postoperative hip scores. Complications and conversion to arthroplasty were also investigated. Thirty-one studies published have reported clinical, functional and imaging outcomes after open and arthroscopic management of FAI syndrome. The modified Coleman methodology score (CMS) averaged 56.2 (range, 30–81). From extracted data, it was shown that arthroscopy, open surgery and arthroscopic surgery followed by mini open surgery are comparable for functional results, biomechanics, and return to sport. Progression of OA and conversion to hip arthroplasty are dependent on preoperative status of cartilage and osteoarthritis and type of management. Debridement and osteoplasty provide better results than debridement only. Significantly improved outcomes have been recorded in patients undergoing labral refixation than resection. The Coleman methodology score showed great heterogeneity in terms of study design and outcome assessment, and generally low methodological quality. Although open and minimally invasive procedures allow athletes to return to professional sports activity, they are contraindicated in patients with severe osteoarthritis and cartilage degeneration.