July 21, 2010 – Many xc ski racers are familiar with the rising number of compartment syndrome cases affecting North American athletes. Indeed, many of us know someone personally who’s had to undergo surgery to help alleviate the pain caused by a buildup of pressure inside the fascia, or sheath, that binds the athlete’s muscles. The increasingly common day surgery is low-risk and generally straight forward, but it is still surgery. All surgeries carry risks, and even if they go smoothly (never a guarantee) it still means precious training time lost to recovery.

For doctors Peter Hoenig and David Brams, chronic exertional compartment syndrome (CECS) is especially worrying. They’re both parents to avid cross-country skiers, and have seen the growing numbers of their kids’ peers who are affected by CECS, so they decided to do something about it.

“No one really knows how big or little a deal it is. So we are conducting a prevalence study. We want to know how many xc athletes have CECS in the USA and Canada, whether there is a particular geographical distribution, as association with gender, body mass index, use of creatine, association with training and stretching pattern, etc,” explained Hoenig. While he admits that the survey will likely reveal more questions than answers, he’s hopeful that they’ll be the right questions.

“With good data we will hopefully be able to answer some of these questions with pretty reliable numbers. These numbers will help us to define the problem, follow the problem over years (with repeat surveys) and further motivate us to look for prevention and treatment modalities.”

This first survey is directed at coaches, and the doctors are open to input from a wide spectrum of programs, be they National Team directors or club-level volunteers…the more data the better.

The survey, which only takes 20-30 minutes, can be found HERE

For further information, coaches are encouraged to contact Brams and Hoenig directly.

-Peter Hoenig, MD
-David Brams, MD
Cambridge Sports Union, MA
phoenig@massmed.org