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Master Athletes

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Abstract

As the world population is aging, there has also been an increase in the older athletic population. Master athletes are older individuals who engage in lifelong regular training and sports at a competitive level. This population is the epitome of health, physical strength, and speed. Master athletes also serve as non-pharmacological models for successful aging and prevention of chronic diseases and disabilities from a public health perspective. When caring for master athletes, clinicians should take into consideration unique characteristics of these individuals including key physiologic changes associated with aging which may impact their training and rehabilitation. In this chapter, we will discuss the age-related changes in the cardiopulmonary, musculoskeletal, and neurological systems which may impact the performance of master athletes. We will focus on the relevant features of master athletes to prevent and manage common injuries among master athletes. Finally, we will discuss sports-specific considerations for master athletes.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Burke Rehabilitation Hospital, Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Montefiore Health System, White Plains, NY, USA

    Tiffany Lau & Mooyeon Oh-Park

Authors
  1. Tiffany Lau
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  2. Mooyeon Oh-Park
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Correspondence to Mooyeon Oh-Park .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Rehabilitation and Human Performance, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA

    Gerardo Miranda-Comas

  2. Princeton Spine and Joint Center, Princeton, NJ, USA

    Grant Cooper

  3. Department of Rehabilitation and Human Performance, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA

    Joseph Herrera

  4. Princeton Spine and Joint Center, Princeton, NJ, USA

    Scott Curtis

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Lau, T., Oh-Park, M. (2021). Master Athletes. In: Miranda-Comas, G., Cooper, G., Herrera, J., Curtis, S. (eds) Essential Sports Medicine. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-64316-4_19

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-64316-4_19

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