Athletes are lauded for playing through injuries, but the short-term gain may lead to long-term pain.

Researchers at Haukeland University in Norway say treating acute pain with prescription and over-the-counter analgesics is not the smartest strategy because it doesn't address the cause of the pain.

"Regular use of pain medications therefore can lead to a worsening of the injury without the athlete realizing the damage that is being inflicted," they concluded.

Acute pain can progress to more difficult-to-manage chronic pain. For athletes, the study says, that happens more often than might be expected.

Analgesics used to mask injuries remove the body's sensory receptors for pain. Regular use will leave athletes worse off in the long run, leading to impaired performance and chronic musculoskeletal disorders, the researchers wrote.

"I think they are absolutely on target," said Liz Joy, a University of Utah team doctor.

For athletes who participate in sports such as football and gymnastics in which they beat up their bodies on a daily basis, it's a tough call for doctors regarding the use of routine anti-inflammatory medications.

"There are likely many conditions that will not benefit from the use of anti-inflammatories, but they may be prescribed anyway," she said.

"Other conditions may benefit from the use of these meds, and athletes in fact perform better and feel better when they take them. However, you certainly run the risk of masking other symptoms which had they been detected could have lead to earlier diagnosis, less severe injury and of course safer sport participation."

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