There is a reality that many know, but few see. To achieve peak performance, athletes need to dedicate intense hours of training. This can cause muscle fatigue and micro-injuries that accumulate throughout your career.
Injuries are known as an Achilles heel for many players and coaching staffs. Imagine dedicating years of training to reach the peak of your physical performance and, on the eve of the most important competition of your career, seeing this dream interrupted due to an injury — like the one that happened to the Brazilian team’s right-back Wesley, who was cut from the team days before the World Cup debut?
And it is something that, unfortunately, happens a lot, as shown by research by our team at the Pharmaceutical Sciences Research Laboratory at the State University of Rio de Janeiro (Lapesf-UERJ), in partnership with the National Institute of Traumatology and Orthopedics (Into).
We analyzed 627 professional athletes and observed that 80% had already suffered an injury during their sporting career. Joints, muscles and tendons were most affected. Furthermore, around 20% had more than one compromised anatomical structure, which could further harm their sporting career.
Repeated injuries represent one of the biggest challenges in an athlete’s career. But why do some get injured more frequently and others seem to be more resistant, even though they are subject to the same training conditions and physical demands?
The answer may be in the DNA
Several studies by our group have already shown that differences in DNA can increase or reduce the genetic susceptibility of athletes to injuries. We have published work that shows, for example, variations in genes involved in the inflammatory process, collagen production, the structure of musculoskeletal tissue, the formation of new blood vessels and the tissue repair capacity after physical exertion.
Furthermore, genetic variants can also influence pain perception. Both the pain we feel after some rigorous physical exercise, and in cases where there is evidence of a musculoskeletal injury.
There is a gene, known as FAAH (Fatty Acid Amide Hydrolase), which participates in the endocannabinoid system, one of those responsible for regulating functions related to the response to stress, inflammation and pain perception. Then, we evaluated variations in this gene in 345 professional athletes from different sports, including football players.
And we observed that those who carried a variant identified as FAAH rs324420 were more likely to report musculoskeletal pain, especially in previously injured regions.
We recently expanded the study to another 130 professional football players, from different clubs in the state of Rio de Janeiro, and the results were similar.
The same genetic variant of the FAAH gene was associated with an increased risk of developing musculoskeletal pain after sports. Furthermore, these players were approximately twice as likely to experience pain in regions of the body previously affected by muscle and joint injuries and tendinopathies.
In other words, sports injuries do not depend only on training, technique or environmental factors. Genetics can also play an important role, influencing how the body responds to physical effort, how they feel or respond to pain, inflammation, the tissue recovery process and the occurrence of injuries.
How can genetic testing help an athlete’s sporting career?
When genetic factors are analyzed, together with clinical and specific characteristics of each athlete, such as age, sex and training load, it is possible to identify those with a greater predisposition to developing injuries or pain. This contributes to the development and application of personalized prevention, training and player health care strategies.
More than improving performance, knowing the genetic profile of each athlete can provide longer, safer and healthier careers. This way, they can reach their maximum potential, with less risk of injuries, as is the case with the famous Cristiano Ronaldo of the Portugal national team, who at 41 years old is the oldest outfield player at the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
It is scientific advancement applied to the field. Instead of resorting to “trial and error” techniques, genetic information can serve as a preventative guide. It is not a sentence, but a trump card. It can be incorporated into the routine of athletes and clubs to individualize training, optimize recovery after training, championships and matches and mitigate each player’s vulnerabilities.
Knowing the genetic profile helps the athlete to differentiate the pain of normal effort from that which signals a dangerous limit, capable of leading to an injury – and, who knows, even costing a title.
This text was published in The Conversation. Click here to read the original version.
