Brief Report: Behavioral Risk Factors for Youth Soccer (Football) Injury

The Relationship Between Personality Traits and Muscle Injuries in Swedish Elite Male Football Players

CONTEXT

The physical and mental demands of an elite football player are complex, which may explain why injuries are common in football. At elite level, muscle injuries of the lower-extremity are the most common among male football players, and the research hitherto is limited.

OBJECTIVE

To investigate whether personality traits affect the incidence of muscle injuries among male football players from the first league in Sweden.

DESIGN

Prospective cohort study.

PARTICIPANTS

A male football team from the first league in Sweden was prospectively followed, in terms of muscle injuries of the lower-extremity during 8 seasons, between 2007 and 2015.

INTERVENTION

All muscle injuries included in this study were evaluated and diagnosed with ultrasonography. Players from the team filled out the Swedish Universities Scales of Personality questionnaire. Swedish Universities Scales of Personality questionnaire consists of 91 items and is divided into 13 categories.

MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES

The raw values of each scale were linearly transformed to T scores, having a mean (SD) of 50 (10). All variables were summarized with standard descriptive statistics, such as frequency, mean, and SD. As data were of interval scale and no variable distribution was severely skewed, differences between noninjured players, rarely injured players, and frequently injured players were analyzed with 1-way analysis of variance with post hoc tests by Tukey honestly significant difference test.

RESULTS

No significant difference in personality traits were observed between noninjured players, rarely injured players, and frequently injured players regarding number of muscle injuries (P > .05). However, a trend (P = .07) was seen, where frequently injured players scored higher on stress susceptibility than rarely injured players.

CONCLUSION

A player's stress susceptibility should be taken into consideration by the player, coaches, and medical staff when assessing the risk of a muscle injury. Also, preventive measures available for these players may need to be considered.

Soccer Injuries in Children and Adolescents

Participation in youth soccer in the United States continues to increase steadily, with a greater percentage of preadolescent participants than perhaps any other youth sport. Despite the wide-ranging health benefits of participation in organized sports, injuries occur and represent a threat to the health and performance of young athletes. Youth soccer has a greater reported injury rate than many other contact sports, and recent studies suggest that injury rates are increasing. Large increases in the incidence of concussions in youth soccer have been reported, and anterior cruciate ligament injuries remain a significant problem in this sport, particularly among female athletes. Considerable new research has identified a number of modifiable risk factors for lower-extremity injuries and concussion, and several prevention programs have been identified to reduce the risk of injury. Rule enforcement and fair play also serve an important role in reducing the risk of injury among youth soccer participants. This report provides an updated review of the relevant literature as well as recommendations to promote the safe participation of children and adolescents in soccer.

UEFA model in identification of types, severity and mechanism of injuries among footballers in the Nigerian Women's Premier League

Objective

To prospectively investigate the injury profile and the incidence rate per 1000 hours exposure during training and actual league matches in the Nigerian Women’s Premier League (NWPL) and to develop an adequate information pool, using the UEFA injury study model in order to develop appropriate injury prevention strategies.

Methods

241 women footballers from the eight football clubs that participated in the 2015/2016 Nigerian Women Premier league (NWPL) season were selected for the study and prospectively followed for a period of 6 months. The UEFA injury report forms and Competitive Aggressiveness and Anger Scale were sent to the various clubs, and the forms administered on them as at when due. The forms were analysed using descriptive statistics.

Results

There was a high incidence rate per 1000 hours of exposure during training sessions (10.98 injuries/1000 hours) and matches (55.56 injuries/1000 hours); the predominant injury type was muscle rupture/strain injuries (35.49%), while moderate severity injuries were the most frequent. The predominant injury mechanism was traumatic injuries caused by contact with other players as a result of a tackle by other players (14.5%). No statistical association was established between the level of aggression and the prevalent types of injury (p=0.63).

Conclusions

The organisers of the league and indeed the referees should ensure that the rules of the game are upheld, and foul or overly aggressive play is penalised. Medical staff and coaches should consider evidence-based injury prevention strategies to reduce the risk of the common injuries sustained in the NWPL.

Evidence-based assessment of childhood injuries and physical risk-taking behaviors

OBJECTIVE

To offer a critical evidence-based review and summary of assessment methods of childhood injuries and physical risk-taking behaviors.

METHODS

A literature review was conducted to identify methodologies for assessing injury events and physical risk-taking behaviors. Methodologies reviewed included self- or parent-report scales, behavioral observations, and participant event monitoring. We classified methodologies according to published criteria of "well-established," "approaching well-established," or "promising."

RESULTS

7 methodologies were classified as "well-established", 9 were classified as "approaching well-established", and 8 were classified as "promising."

CONCLUSIONS

Several approaches to assessing injuries or physical risk-taking behaviors have strong psychometric properties. Opportunities for further psychometric validation of techniques are noted. It is hoped that this review inspires researchers throughout the fields of pediatric and clinical child psychology to adopt assessments of injury and physical risk-taking in their ongoing research efforts.

Personality and injury risk among professional hockey players

Background:

Although much is known about risk for athletic injury, research on the roles of individual differences in personality and temperament on athletic injury has lagged. We hypothesized that professional athletes with high sensation-seeking and extraversion scores, and with low effortful control scores, would experience more injuries over the course of a season, would have more severe injuries, and would miss more total days of play.

Methods:

Prospective design with questionnaire report at time one and injury tracking throughout an 18-week athletic season. Setting: Professional hockey team in the United States. Participants: Eighteen professional hockey players (ages 21-33).

Measurement:

Players completed self-report personality (Sensation-Seeking Scale, Form V) and temperament (the Adult Temperament Questionnaire) measures. Quantity and severity of injury, as well as playing time missed, were tracked for 18 weeks.

Results:

On average, players experienced almost 6 injuries causing a loss of 10 playing days through the season. Those players scoring high on Boredom Susceptibility and Total Sensation-Seeking incurred more total injuries. Those scoring high on temperamental neutral perceptual sensitivity suffered more severe injuries.

Conclusions:

Athletes who suffered more injuries reported a preference for stimulating environments and boredom with non-stimulating environments. Injury severity was not correlated with sensation-seeking but was related to temperamental perceptual sensitivity. Implications for identification of injury-prone athletes, pre-injury training, and post-injury treatment are discussed.

Soccer injuries in children

Soccer is the most popular sport in the world, with FIFA recognising more than 265 million amateur players. Despite the fact that soccer is a contact sport, it is perceived to be relatively safe to play, a factor that has contributed to its status as the fastest growing team sport in the USA. Acute and minor injuries predominate in the statistics, with contusions and abrasions being the most commonly recorded. As would be expected, the majority of soccer injuries are to the lower limbs, with serious truncal and spinal trauma being rare. This article examines the type and anatomic location of injuries sustained by children and adolescents who play soccer, and the main mechanisms whereby such injuries occur. The risk factors underpinning injury occurrence are considered, along with injury avoidance tactics.

Self-reported psychological characteristics as risk factors for injuries in female youth football

Identifying and understanding injury risk factors are necessary to target the injury-prone athlete and develop injury prevention measurements. The influence of psychological factors on injuries in football is poorly documented. The purpose of this 8-month prospective cohort study therefore was to examine whether psychological player characteristics assessed by a self-administered questionnaire represent risk factors for injury. At baseline, female football players (14-16 years) were asked to complete a detailed questionnaire covering player history, previous injuries, perception of success and motivational climate, life stress, anxiety and coping strategies. During the 2005 season, a total of 1430 players were followed up to record injuries. A history of a previous injury [odds ratio (OR)=1.9 (1.4; 2.5), P<0.001] increased the risk of a new injury to the same region. There were significant differences in disfavor for previously injured compared with non-injured players for ego orientation (P=0.007), perception of a performance climate (P=0.003) and experienced stressful life events (P<0.001). However, only high life stress (P=0.001) and perception of a mastery climate (P=0.03) were significant risk factors for new injuries. In conclusion, a perceived mastery climate and a high level of life stress were significant predictors for new injuries in a cohort of young female football players.

The Epidemiology of Soccer Heading in Competitive Youth Players

We administered neurocognitive batteries to 49 youth soccer athletes (9–15 yr), who were selected from competitive soccer teams in Central Florida. We collected observational data on soccer heading, self-reported soccer heading, as well as demographics, including school, medical, and soccer history. Both the frequency and intensity of heading the ball in soccer was low in comparison with adolescents and adults. In our sample, the vast majority of soccer headings were of low to moderate intensity and direct (i.e., the incoming flight of the ball was perpendicular to the forehead). Age significantly correlated with frequent heading. Parents were reliable observers of their children’s soccer heading behavior and other at-risk behaviors during games. The majority of soccer headings were direct rather than flicks. Almost half of our participants reported headache and one-fourth reported dizziness after instances of heading the ball. Frequency of soccer heading was not related to neuropsychological score data.