David Beckham has ruptured his Achilles tendon, severely damaging his chance of playing for England in the 2010 World Cup. Professor Nicola Maffulli, Centre Lead for Sports and Exercise Medicine at Queen Mary, University of London shares his thoughts on the matter:
"A ruptured Achilles tendon is a common injury in football players. Surgeons in the UK are used to operating on such patients on a regular basis. Not only do I have a special interest in this condition but I have already operated successfully on a number of football players, including past and current England players David Batty and Matthew Upson.
"The procedure is minimally invasive, can be performed under local anaesthesia and allows the player to weight bear immediately after the surgery. Unfortunately the nature of the injury is such that, even in extremely skilled hands, it is unlikely that Beckham would be able to take part in the World Cup.
"The Centre for Sports and Exercise Medicine at Queen Mary, University of London is a world renowned centre for Achilles tendon research, publishing more than 70 papers in peer-reviewed journals in 2009. The Centre will be hosting the International Symposium on ligaments and tendons in the year of the London Olympics, 2012."
For media information, contact: