The correlation between the imaging characteristics of hamstring injury and time required before returning to sports: a literature review

Injuries to the hamstring muscles are common in athletes. Track and field, Australian football, American football and soccer are examples of sports where hamstring injuries are the most common. The purpose of this study was to investigate whether there is a correlation between a hamstring injury prognosis and its characteristics of imaging parameters. The literature search was performed in the databases PubMed and CINAHL, and eleven articles were included. Seven out of the 11 articles showed a correlation between the size of the hamstring injury and length of time required before returning to sports. Different authors have reported contrasting results about length of time required before returning to sports due to location of injury within specific muscle. Majority of the articles found hamstring strain correlated to an extended amount of time required before returning to sports.