Safety of a preadolescent basketball program

Sport-related injuries in Iranian basketball players: evidence from a retrospective epidemiologic study (2019-20)

OBJECTIVES

Basketball is a contact sport with complex movements that include jumps, turns, and changes in direction, which cause frequent musculoskeletal injuries in all regions of the body. Also, injury patterns among athletes, particularly basketball players, continue to evolve and change. The current retrospective epidemiologic study aimed to investigate the incidence, severity, and sports-related risk factors of injuries in Iranian basketball players from 2019 to 2020.

METHODS

Using the Information Retrospective Injury Questionnaire (online version), data on basketball-related injuries were collected retrospectively for 204 basketball players of the Iranian league (professional super league and first-division league) during the 2019/2020 season.

RESULTS

A total of 628 injuries were reported, which was equivalent to 6.07 injuries/1000 h. The ankle was the location of most injuries (n = 116 or 26.9%; overuse injuries (n = 40 or 20.3%)), followed by lower back/pelvis injuries (acute injury n = 67 (15.5%) and overuse injuries (n = 23; 11.6%)), knee injuries (acute injury n = 62 (15.7%) and overuse injuries (n = 31 (14.3%)), wrist/fingers injuries (acute injury (n = 85 (13.4%)) and overuse injuries (n = 8; 4.0%)), and shin/calf injuries (acute injury (n = 35; 8.1%) and overuse injuries (n = 28; 14.2%)). Mean time loss in first-division league players was much higher than professional super league players (7.84/1000 h exposure vs. 4.30/1000 h exposure), respectively.

CONCLUSION

The ankle sprain was the most common injury in our study. Lower back/pelvis injuries had the longest time loss. Injury was more frequent among first-division league players than those in the professional super league. Injuries during practice were notably more frequent than during competition with different patterns of injuries.

Analysis of sex-specific injury patterns and risk factors in young high-level athletes

This study analyzed sex-specific injury patterns and risk factors in young athletes (n=256) from 12 sport disciplines practicing at the national or the international level in the Grand-Duchy of Luxembourg. Injury occurrence as a result of sport practice was analyzed retrospectively over the year 2006 using a standardized self-administered questionnaire. Overall incidence was not different between girls and boys (1.20 and 1.21 injuries/1000 athlete-hours, respectively), but in the context of team sport competition girls tended to be at a greater risk (rate ratio 2.05, P=0.053). Girls had a higher proportion of injuries in the ankle/foot region compared with boys (34.8% vs 16.8%). No sex-related differences were found regarding injury severity. Multivariate logistic regression (controlling for age and practice volume) revealed that girls' team sports were associated with a greater injury risk compared with individual sports [odds ratio (OR) of 4.76], while in boys this was observed for racket sports (OR=3.31). Furthermore, physical or emotional stress tended to be a specific risk factor in girls. There was a tendency for injury outside sports to be coupled to a higher injury risk in girls and boys. Consideration of sex-specific injury patterns and risk factors could be of importance for effective injury prevention.

Quantifying the risk of sports injury: a systematic review of activity-specific rates for children under 16 years of age

Injuries caused by sports and other forms of physical activity in young children constitute a significant public health burden. It is important to quantify this risk to ensure that the benefits of sport participation are not outweighed by the potential harms. This review summarises the literature reporting exposure-based injury rates for various forms of physical activity in children aged 15 years and younger. Forty eight studies were found, of which 27 reported injury rates per hourly based exposure measured and 21 reported injury rates according to some other measure. Fourteen different sports and activities were covered, mostly team ball sports, with soccer being the most widely studied. Injury definition and the method of ascertaining and measuring injuries differed between studies, which created a large variation in reported injury rates that did not necessarily represent actual differences in injury risk between activities. The highest hourly based injury rates were reported for ice hockey, and the lowest were for soccer, although the range of injury rates for both of these activities was wide. Very few studies have investigated sports-related injuries in children younger than 8 years or in unorganised sports situations.

Incidence of sporting injury in New Zealand youths aged 6-15 years

OBJECTIVE

To document the incidence of injury in 6-15 year olds playing rugby union, rugby league, and netball, and to identify the common mechanisms, sites, severity, and time of injury.

METHODS

Cross sectional data were collected by trained observers who watched 258 games of rugby union, netball, and rugby league over a four week period. The condition of the injured participants was monitored until recovery.

RESULTS

In total, 5174 players were observed and an injury rate of 18 per 1000 player hours was calculated. Of all observed injuries, 29% required some form of medical treatment. A significant difference (p<0.05) in the distribution of injury over the four quarters of the games was recorded, most occurring in the first three quarters. In total, 81% of the injuries were classified as contact injuries, and these mainly occurred through direct contact with the opposition. Of all observed injuries, 27% were recurrent.

CONCLUSIONS

The incidence of injury in rugby union, netball, and rugby league is low for children aged between 6 and 15 years relative to adult rates.