The PPE for female athletes（Pre-participation Physical Evaluation for female athletes) is an online health check tool for female athletes developed based on research evidence to help maintain the health and safety of female athletes and para-athletes.

What is PPE for female athletes?

The competitive performance of female athletes and para-athletes in Japan is improving year by year.

However, there is also a tendency for athletes to pursue a high level of performance, and in pursuit of this, they tend to work too hard, without regard for their health, to the detriment of their health. In the field of coaching, there is no health assessment to understand the physical characteristics, underlying diseases, allergies, etc. of female athletes and para-athletes, and no guidelines based on this assessment, so “judging the quantity and quality of training” is left to the experience of coaches. Therefore, a major problem is that athletes continue to exercise until health problems are induced.
Therefore, it is necessary to regularly check and record past medical history and current health status to continue healthy competition at an appropriate exercise intensity, and it is also important to share this information with coaches and support staff.

Early detection is particularly effective in preventing the three disorders that female athletes are most prone to (low energy availability, hypothalamic amenorrhea, and osteoporosis: Female Athlete Triad (FAT)), and it is important to seek medical attention as soon as possible at the first sign of illness.

The Japanese Center for Research on Women in Sport (JCRWS) has developed the “PPE for female athletes (Pre-participation Physical Evaluation for female athletes)” through the “Research and Study for Strategic Enhancement of Female Athletes,” a project for the development and support of female athletes commissioned by the Japan Sports Agency in the fiscal year 2019 and 2020. PPE for female athletes (Pre-participation Physical Evaluation for female athletes) was developed.

Natsue Koikawa

Deputy Director, The Japanese Center for Research on Women in Sports Professor, Faculty of Health and Sports Science, Juntendo University

Message
from the Principal Investigator

PPE should always be done “pre- and post-season!”
Female athletes are encouraged to utilize PPE for female athletes to prevent injury and illness and participate in exercise with a healthy body. Participating in exercise in a healthy condition will lead to a high level of athletic performance in the long term.
Furthermore, for the coaches and support staff who assist athletes, the result will be to promote the development of internationally competitive female athletes.

Let’s start PPE