Background:
Research has shown that some of the more common psychological responses to injury (ie, depression, anger, anxiety) are amplified in cases of traumatic injury.
Hypothesis/purpose:
An 18-year-old male scholarship soccer player who, owing to a perceived deliberate injurious tackle by an opposition player, tore the medial collateral ligament and anterior cruciate ligament of his right knee. A psychological case perspective is presented.
Study design:
Retrospective case report.
Results:
Various personal and situational factors can compound negative psychological response to injury. A number of extreme responses are explored, including posttraumatic stress, depression, and fear of reinjury.
Conclusions:
Practitioners should be willing and able to facilitate referral in the instance of more extreme psychological response to anterior cruciate ligament injury.