To evaluate the relationship of CA and sexual maturity with skeletal maturity (SM) determined by MRI of the LDRE in adolescent football players from Medellin, Colombia.
Cross-sectional study that included 60 male football players with certified legal age between 12 and 18 years. Medical evaluation and MRI of the LDRE using a 1.5 T scanner was performed according to a described protocol. The image reading was performed by 3 blinded evaluators. SM was classified as: A: immature; B: developing; C: mature, and inter- and intra-observer variability was assessed.
Among the football players included in the study, the average body mass index and body fat were 19.6 ± 2.0 kg/m2 and 11.1 ± 1.2%, respectively. A correlation of CA and the Tanner stage of genital maturity with SM (Kendall's Tau_b 0.686 and 0.693, respectively; P < .001) was found. All players classified as stage C were 17 or older and Tanner stage V. The inter-observer and intra-observer agreement showed a kappa index of 0.36 (P < .001) and 0.60 (P < .001), respectively.
A relationship was found between CA and sexual maturity and SM by MRI of the LDRE in adolescent football players. Classification by stage of SM in 3 categories could be more practical and have implications for competition.