Injuries in Austrian football players: Are they an issue?

Abstract

Purpose and Hypothesis With its load characteristics, the team sport of football places high physical demands on players and thus is associated with a high risk of injury. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to collect information about injuries suffered by football players in Austria during training or matches to enable participating clubs to learn about injuries.

Methods One hundred and forty-five players from seven teams with age ranging from 16 to 38 years participated in this prospective study during the 2015/16 season. Injury surveillance was conducted according to the consensus statement of Fuller et al. (2006).

Results During the period of study, a total of 83 injuries were recorded, which represents an overall incidence of 4.5 injuries/1000 hours (2.3 injuries/1000 hours in training and 14.2 injuries/1000 hours of match play). There was a significant difference for older age in injured players compared to non-injured players (p = 0.019). No differences in BMI were detected (p = 0.427). Ninety-four percent of all injuries occurred in the lower extremity, with the thigh (25.8 %), ankle (19.3 %) and knee (13.3 %) being the major locations of injuries. Muscle tendon injuries were the most common non-contact injuries (78.9 %).

Conclusion Lower extremity injuries are the most common injury in Austrian football. The incidence of muscle injuries is high, especially injuries of the posterior thigh. There are promising preventive strategies for the most common injury types. The implementation of these strategies is essential in order to reduce the incidence or recurrence of these football injuries.

Zusammenfassung

Hintergrund Die Mannschaftssportart Fußball mit ihrem Anforderungsprofil stellt hohe physische Anforderungen an die Spieler. Die Ausübung dieser Sportart ist mit einem hohen Verletzungsrisiko verbunden. Ziel dieser Studie ist es daher, Informationen über die Art und Schwere der auftretenden Fußballverletzungen während Trainingseinheiten und Spielen in Österreich zu sammeln, um den teilnehmenden Vereinen Informationen über Verletzungen und verletzungspräventive Maßnahmen bereitzustellen.

Patienten/ Material und Methoden Insgesamt nahmen 145 Fußballspieler (Alter 16 – 38 Jahre) aus sieben Mannschaften an dieser prospektiven Studie teil. Die Datenerhebung erfolgte in der Saison 2015/16 und wurde auf Grundlage des Consensus-Statements von Fuller et al. (2006) durchgeführt.

Ergebnisse Während der Studienlaufzeit wurden 83 Verletzungen verzeichnet. Die Verletzungsinzidenz betrug dabei 4,5 Verletzungen/1000 Stunden (2,3 Verletzungen/1000 Trainingsstunden und 14,2 Verletzungen/1000 Spielstunden). Ein signifikanter Unterschied für das Alter besteht zwischen verletzten und unverletzten Spielern (p = 0,019), nicht jedoch für den BMI (p = 0,427). 94 % der Verletzungen traten an den unteren Extremitäten auf, wobei Oberschenkel (25,8 %), Sprunggelenk (19,3 %) und Knie (13,3 %) am häufigsten betroffen waren. Muskel- und Sehnenverletzungen stellten die häufigsten non-contact-Verletzungen dar (78,9 %).

Schlussfolgerung Die meisten Fußballverletzungen betreffen die unteren Extremitäten. Die Inzidenz von Muskelverletzungen ist hoch, besonders in der ischiocruralen Muskulatur. Es bestehen vielversprechende präventive Strategien für die häufigsten Fußballverletzungen. Eine flächendeckende Umsetzung ist unerlässlich, um das (Wieder-)Auftreten dieser Fußballverletzungen zu reduzieren.

Key words

football (soccer) - injury surveillance - epidemiology - incidence

Schlüsselwörter

Fußball - Verletzungen - Epidemiologie - Inzidenz

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