Is This More Dangerous Than Boxing?
Introduction: The History Of Muay Thai & Sustained Damage In Muay Thai
Even with the known trauma in Muay Thai and as old as this combat sport is, it remains popular with Thai locals and has even grown more popular around the world. Muay Thai kickboxing is an ancient combat sport of Thailand that uses stand-up striking and various clinching techniques.
The sport requires the practitioner to wear gloves and protective gear to protect themselves. Though injury rates are low, this form of martial arts does have some risks to its practitioners.
Read up on Protective Gear for Muay Thai | Muay Thai boxing gloves
And:
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The sport, which some characterize by its violent nature, has been popularized across the world as many are drawn to it for fitness purposes. However, what many who wish to pursue it for competition do not know about Muay Thai Kickboxing are the hidden dangers of injury. They can be devastating and may even result in long-term health problems.
As with ALL sports, there is a risk of injury in them all. That’s just the way the game is.
What Is Known So Far About Muay Thai Injuries
Muay Thai kickboxing observational studies revealed a lot about the risk of injury in competitive kickboxing, but there’s not much to go on as far as how it plays with the mental aspect of the fighters. Overall, there’s not a lot of information available about sports trauma in full-contact combat sports such as Muay Thai.
At this point scientifically, there’s not a lot that’s known or the risk factors from which Muay Thai fighters suffer.
From a public health perspective, it is believed that there needs to be more research conducted to add to the current findings gathered to provide more insight into the nature and frequency of this combat sport.
With the current data that’s being collected and used on Muay Thai fighters who compete in amateur and professional fighting, these are the first steps being taken to help to improve Muay Thai fighters’ health and safety.
Most Muay Thai fighters believe that their risk of injury in Muay Thai was average and much lower than other combat sports, which included popular combat sports like boxing and MMA. Based on these fighters, a mismatch has become apparent between actual risk and their injury risk perception.
Muay Thai Risk Factors
Since Muay Thai combines martial arts with boxing, it creates a brutal sport that uses the entire body as an offensive weapon. Along with high kicks, elbows, and punches, this sport has its unique problems common in Muay Thai fighters.
In Muay Thai, the risk of injury is dependent on the following factors: how much experience the fighter has, the use of protective equipment, any previously suffered injuries, weight class, and age.
What are the most common areas of injury in Muay Thai Kickboxing?
The Muay Thai kickboxing sport is fast-paced and intense. One of the most dangerous elements of Muay Thai kickboxing is unprotected contact with the head, which creates a higher risk of experiencing head injuries.
Complications in Muay Thai kickboxing can come from strikes such as kicks or punches to the head, clinches for more control during a match, and a variety of other techniques.
The most common body area that Muay Thai fighters suffer from is in the extremities. When comparing injury to the extremities versus the head, the head has been known to be much lower, even with the number of concussions suffered.
Another common injury sustained in Muay Thai Kickboxing is a broken nose. When someone gets punched or kicked in the nose, their nasal bones break and shift. This isn’t the only injury that occurs during Muay Thai kickboxing, though.
Common Injuries In Muay Thai Kickboxing
Muay Thai is a very physical, quite brutal combat sport that requires immense physical fitness. The sport requires the practitioner to endure punches, kicks, and falls to perform moves. These include cuts, contusions, and fractures.
Hands In Muay Thai
Athletes will often experience fractures, sprains, open wounds, and cuts. The hands are the most active part of the body in a fighter’s ring and can be the most vulnerable. They commonly occur from punches or excessive striking.
Muay Thai Kick Damage
Muay Thai kickboxing is a sport that involves throwing punches and kicks, to disable the opponent. Unfortunately, the focus on disabling opponents can lead to serious harm due to the nature of the techniques used.
For example, shin kicks, which are common in Muay Thai, involve kicking someone’s leg or kneecap forcefully. This affects the bones and tissue of the knee. Over time, the knee may be unable to function properly.
Muay Thai kicks are delivered with power and precision, that’s why it is very important to wear shin guards during training to reduce the cause of injury to the leg, foot, or toes when striking your opponent. There are shin guards that cover the complete leg and foot for the best protection during training.
Knee Damage
In Muay Thai these very are common in kickboxing because of the nature of the sport. They include the knee ligaments, cartilage, meniscus, and tendons.
According to the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons, the knees are the most common athletic injury treated by orthopedic surgeons. The majority of them are severe enough to warrant surgical treatment and occur during contact sports like football, soccer, and wrestling.
What do you think happens when you have combat fighters targeting the knees?
Head Impact In Muay Thai
One of the most common results of an impact on the head is a concussion, which can happen often when you are kicked in the head or hit repeatedly with punches. Muay Thai Kickboxing is one of the most dangerous sports in the world. It has many risks to your head which can lead to severe head trauma.
If a Muay Thai Kickboxing practitioner suffers from a brain injury, it could result in a life-changing injury. A brain injury usually occurs because of a direct blow to the head. The force of a head on a hard surface could cause multiple trauma to the head. The most common brain injury in Muay Thai kickboxing is a concussion.
Ankle Damage In Muay Thai
What is some ankle trouble you can suffer from? Ankle sprains are some of the most commonly seen in Muay Thai Kickboxing practitioners because many of the moves require turning or twisting on the knee joint. They include damage to ligaments in the ankle joint.
Wrist Problems In Muay Thai
Can you mess up your wrists in Muay Thai? According to a study from the Journal of Hand Therapy, wrist problems in Thai Kickboxing result from two main causes:
- direct trauma to the ulnar styloid process and distal radioulnar joint
- excessive abrasion of the skin on the palmar side of the wrist.
Direct trauma to the ulnar styloid process is primarily a result of punching. However, as Muay Thai kickboxing often involves kicks to the legs and elbows, some elbow injuries can also occur from this type of trauma.
Pelvis Harm In Muay Thai
Can fighters get hurt in their pelvic area in Muay Thai Kickboxing? Muay Thai Kickboxing is a martial art form that relies heavily on the use of knees, elbows, and kicks. These types of contact can lead to harming the pelvic region. Several types include bruising, hematomas, ligament tears, or even fractures.
Elbow Damage In Muay Thai
Elbow damage that can happen in Muay Thai Kickboxing is not the most common, but they do include ligament damage, bursitis, and tendon inflammation. It is important to stay on top of your training and recovery if you want to maintain long-term health.
Prevention Of Muay Thai Trauma
Getting hurt in Muay Thai Kickboxing is common. Even though the sport requires practitioners to be flexible and agile, the sport also causes the practitioner’s joints to become vulnerable to damage. To prevent this in Muay Thai kickboxing, a practitioner should work on their flexibility, strength, and balance while at the same time also remaining vigilant in wearing protective gear.
This will allow the practitioner to lower the risks of injury or concussions.
Strategies for injury prevention in combat sports like Muay Thai kickboxing need to implement and focus more on educational, psychological, and the social aspects of their sport. They need to intervene so as to rectify incorrect belief systems when it comes to injury risk in combative sports.
Prevention In Strength and Conditioning Training
This article is written with the goal of prevention in mind for Muay Thai Kickboxing. A major means of injury prevention is through strength and conditioning training. Strength training can help to reduce risk by making muscles, bones, and ligaments stronger.
Conditioning training refers to physical activities that are done at a high-intensity level to reach peak performance levels. Injury prevention is always better than treatment because it saves time, money, and rehabilitation time.
Because Muay Thai is a contact sport, a practitioner should be sure to pay attention to their health and safety.
Stronger muscles will give a practitioner more strength which will allow them to use their techniques more effectively. Because Muay Thai kickboxing is a contact sport, a practitioner should be sure to wear protective gear to reduce the risk of injury.
Prevention With Protective Gear
There are many different types of protective gear for Muay Thai kickboxing. Examples of protective gear include shin protectors, knee pads, elbow pads, headgear, mouth guards, and shin guards. Protective gear absorbs shock from the blows from opponents and protects a practitioner’s soft tissues.
Prevention is an important component of Muay Thai kickboxing because these are often debilitating or even life-threatening. While protective gear is an important aspect of Muay Thai kickboxing, it is not the only factor.
Other components of Muay Thai kickboxing include how well a practitioner uses their techniques and how much strength they have.
If a Muay Thai fighter still ends up injured, then they’re most likely going to need rehabilitation or surgery, or maybe both.
Repairing Rehabilitation Surgery
All athletes know the importance of staying injury-free, but for some athletes, it is more important than others. Muay Thai Kickboxing is an intense sport that often leaves its athletes with painful injuries which may cause them to miss out on training or competitions. The best way to heal is through rehabilitation or surgery if the need arises.
Without these, the athlete will most likely not be able to compete in their desired sport.
Muay Thai athletes show more unrealistic optimism than other combat sport athletes. With this unrealistic outlook on actual risk, they overestimate their abilities which could lead to an increase in injury rate.
Rehabilitation has two main purposes: to help the athlete get back to full health and to prevent future damage. One of the main focuses of rehabilitation is to heal. The injury may be minor or major.
Minor areas inflicted can be the muscles or ligaments. On the other hand, major problems may occur in the bones, cartilage, or tendons. When the injury is minor, the practitioner can handle the injury with proper physical therapy and specific injury-related exercise.
However, if the injury is major, the practitioner will most likely need surgery.
Muay Thai Kick Boxing Surgery
Anterior Cruciate Ligament Surgery
The anterior cruciate ligament is another common injury in Muay Thai. This ligament is located in the front of the knee, connecting the thigh bone to the shin bone. The injury is very similar to an ACL injury in soccer. The ligament allows the thigh bone to rotate with the shin bone.
In the case of ACL injury, the ligament may be torn off and not attached to the shin bone. In the case of Muay Thai, the injury causes the thigh bone to rotate with the shin bone and this may tear the ligament.
Management of Knee In Muay Thai
Because of the nature of the injury, surgery may be required to repair or replace damaged tissue. Many different types of knee surgery are performed for both acute and chronic conditions. Knee reconstruction or surgery is common in athletes who have torn the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL).
For athletes who have injured the posterior cruciate ligament (PCL), posterior cruciate ligament reconstruction is a common treatment.
Conclusion: Muay Thai fighters should be aware of the risks before they ever step into the ring. There are many different ways you can reduce your risk of injury in Muay Thai.
Some of the most effective ways are stretching before and after practice, wearing appropriate protective equipment, using hand wraps when needed, and taking care when sparring.
It is important to consult with an orthopedic physician if you sustain an injury that does not heal on its own or that gets worse over time. Completing rehabilitation and surgery is a must if you want to return to fighting after an injury.
That’s what we have for now on Muay Thai because like we said, the data is thin. If you’ve got any input let us know in the comments below! Take care and play safe.
