'Another world of pain' - Athlete and sport physiotherapist perspectives on the unique experience of pain in sport

Our objective was to explore athlete's and sports physiotherapists' experiences of sports-related pain in the upper and lower limb. Using a constructivist and pragmatic perspective, we carried out focus groups comprising a deliberate criterion sample of athletes and sports physiotherapists. We used a topic guide that moved from open exploratory questions to questions focusing on the phenomena of sports-related pain in athletes. We coded, developed candidate themes and refined finalised themes using reflexive thematic analysis. A member of our research team acted as a critical friend adding additional perspectives. We followed the Consolidated Criteria for Reporting Qualitative Research (COREQ). We completed five focus groups comprising 12 athletes (n=5 female, n=7 male) and four sports physiotherapists (n=4 male) including one initial pilot (two athletes). We developed four final themes (1-4) and nine subthemes (1.1-4.3): (1) Athlete Pain Lens (1.1 - pain is part of being an athlete and 1.2 - pain shapes the life of an athlete), (2) Exploring And Navigating Pain (2.1 - the sports-related pain spectrum and 2.2 - making sense of pain), (3) The Emotional Toll of Pain (3.1 - challenging emotions and 3.2 - the impact of time) and (4) Coping, Community and Communication (4.1 - coping with pain, 4.2 - influence of community and support network and 4.3 - communication, the broken key). We highlighted the distinct and challenging phenomenon of sports-related pain experienced by athletes and physiotherapists. Through effective communication, members of the athlete's community may recognise, and adjust to these challenges.