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Risk factors

By Mayo Clinic staff

You may be at increased risk of stress fractures if you:

  • Are an athlete who participates in high-impact sports such as track and field, basketball, tennis or gymnastics
  • Are a female athlete with abnormal or absent periods
  • Suddenly shift from a sedentary lifestyle to an active training regimen — such as a military recruit subjected to intense marching exercises — or rapidly increase your exercise length and intensity
  • Have flat feet or high, rigid arches
  • Have osteoporosis or other conditions that lead to weakened bones or decreased bone density
References
  1. Stress fractures of the foot and ankle. American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons. http://orthoinfo.aaos.org/topic.cfm?topic=A00379&return_link=0. Accessed Nov. 6, 2008.
  2. Killie H, et al. Overview of stress fractures. http://www.uptodate.com/home/index.html. Accessed Nov. 6, 2008.
  3. Zetaruk M, et al. Leg injuries. In: Frontera WR. Clinical Sports Medicine Management and Rehabilitation. Philadelphia, Pa.: Saunders Elsevier; 2007. http://www.mdconsult.com/das/book/body/110217197-3/0/1717/1.html?tocnode=55568581&fromURL=1.html. Accessed Nov. 13, 2008.
  4. Fields KB, et al. Stress fractures of the tibia and fibula. http://www.uptodate.com/home/index.html. Accessed Nov. 6, 2008.
  5. Clugston JR, et al. Stress fractures of the metatarsal shaft. http://www.uptodate.com/home/index.html. Accessed Nov. 6, 2008.

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Nov. 22, 2008

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