Lumbar transverse process fractures in professional football players.

In the general population, fractures of the transverse processes of lumbar vertebrae occur in cases of high-energy blunt trauma, often in motor vehicle accidents. Football players may incur the same fractures, but the circumstances and outcomes are different in this specific subgroup. A review of 29 cases among National Football League players reveals that associated visceral injuries are rare, and the time lost from sports is only an average of 3.5 weeks.