Purpose Session RPE (sRPE) is used to track internal training/competition load in athletes using a metric known as the acute to chronic workload ratio (ACWR). Research that reported on team sports has determined that if the acute load is higher than the chronic load, athletes are likely to sustain injury. No studies, however, have attempted to investigate internal load and injury in a tennis population despite the rigorous training loads. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to investigate if sRPE ACWR is associated with injury in junior tennis players over a 7-month time period. Methods Forty-two junior tennis players were recruited to participate, 26 were included in the final analysis. Players provided a rating of RPE as an estimate of training intensity every day after training/match sessions. sRPE, a measure of internal and external training load was calculated by multiplying the training/match sRPE by the session duration in minutes. Players self-reported all injuries. The ACWR was the primary independent variable. Acute load was determined as the total sRPE for 1 wk, whereas a 4-wk rolling average sRPE represented chronic load. Results Seventeen players sustained injuries. The model indicated that ACWR from the previous week (P < 0.001) and previous injury history (P = 0.003) were significant predictors of injury the following week. In the week preceding injury, the average ACWR was 1.57 (SD, 0.90). Conclusion Injured players had on average 1.5 times more training load in the past week compared with the previous 4 wk. A majority of players who went on to sustain an injury were not prepared for the load endured. These results were similar to previous studies investigating ACWR where an acute increase in load was associated with increased injury risk.
Background:A sport-specific conditioning program can help tennis players train for competition or return to play from injury. This study determined the actual tennis serve volume in elite play and used these data to construct an interval training program based on stroke volume.Hypothesis:There will be no differences in serve volume between male and female tennis players at the professional and junior levels.Study Design:Retrospective cohort study.Level of Evidence:Level 3.Methods:Game day statistic scorecards were provided to the research team from the 2013 and 2014 United States Open and the 2014 Metropolia Orange Bowl International Tennis Championships. Serve volume data for both male and female players were extracted from the scorecards. Data included serves per match and per set. These data were used to construct a sport-specific tennis program to meet the demands of the serve.Results:Professional male players serve 63 more serves per match than junior male players because of the greater number of sets played (P < 0.01). Professional female players serve 10 more serves per match than junior female players playing the same number of sets (P = 0.01). All male players hit 2 more total serves per set than all female players (P < 0.01). Regardless of sex, professional players serve 4 more serves per set than junior players (P < 0.01). The typical number of serves per set was 40 in elite-level tennis players, resulting in a 3:1 ratio of first to second serves.Conclusion:These data establish the “unit dose” of serves per match and/or per set for each group.Clinical Relevance:Coaches and health care providers may use these data in estimating loads per tournament/season and to prepare tennis athletes for individual competition and/or as they return to play after an injury.
Context Athletes often preoperatively weigh the risks and benefits of electing to undergo an orthopaedic procedure to repair damaged tissue. A common concern for athletes is being able to return to their maximum levels of competition after shoulder surgery, whereas clinicians struggle with the ability to provide a consistent prognosis of successful return to participation after surgery. The variation in study details and rates of return in the existing literature have not supplied clinicians with enough evidence to give overhead athletes adequate information regarding successful return to participation when deciding to undergo shoulder surgery. Objective To investigate the odds of overhead athletes returning to preinjury levels of participation after arthroscopic superior labral repair. Data Sources The CINAHL, MEDLINE, and SPORTDiscus databases from 1972 to 2013. Study Selection The criteria for article selection were (1) The study was written in English. (2) The study reported surgical repair of an isolated superior labral injury or a superior labral injury with soft tissue debridement. (3) The study involved overhead athletes equal to or less than 40 years of age. (4) The study assessed return to the preinjury level of participation. Data Extraction We critically reviewed articles for quality and bias and calculated and compared odds ratios for return to full participation for dichotomous populations or surgical procedures. Data Synthesis Of 215 identified articles, 11 were retained: 5 articles about isolated superior labral repair and 6 articles about labral repair with soft tissue debridement. The quality range was 11 to 17 (42% to 70%) of a possible 24 points. Odds ratios could be generated for 8 of 11 studies. Nonbaseball, nonoverhead, and nonthrowing athletes had a 2.3 to 5.8 times greater chance of full return to participation than overhead/throwing athletes after isolated superior labral repair. Similarly, nonoverhead athletes had 1.5 to 3.5 times greater odds for full return than overhead athletes after labral repair with soft tissue debridement. In 1 study, researchers compared surgical procedures and found that overhead athletes who underwent isolated superior labral repair were 28 times more likely to return to full participation than those who underwent concurrent labral repair and soft tissue debridement (P < .05). Conclusions The rate of return to participation after shoulder surgery within the literature is inconsistent. Odds of returning to preinjury levels of participation after arthroscopic superior labral repair with or without soft tissue debridement are consistently lower in overhead/throwing athletes than in nonoverhead/nonthrowing athletes. The variable rates of return within each group could be due to multiple confounding variables not consistently accounted for in the articles.
Clinical Scenario: Workload monitoring and management of an athlete is viewed by many as an essential training component to determine if an athlete is adapting to a training program and to minimize injury risk. Although training workload may be measured a variety of different ways, session rate of perceived exertion (sRPE) is often used in the literature due to its clinical ease. In recent years, sports scientists have been investigating sRPE as a measure of internal workload and its relationship to injury in elite-level athletes using a metric known as the acute:chronic workload ratio (ACWR). This critically appraised topic was conducted to determine if internal workload using the ACWR is associated with injury. Focused Clinical Question: In elite-level athletes, is there an association between the ACWR for sRPE and noncontact injuries? Summary of Search, Best Evidence Appraised, and Key Findings: The literature was searched for studies investigating the association between noncontact injuries and the sRPE ACWR in elite athletes. Three prospective cohort studies were included. Two studies found that high ACWR led to 2.0 to 4.5 times greater injury risk compared with a more balanced ACWR. One study found that low chronic workloads coupled with a low ACWR were associated with injury. Clinical Bottom Line: The majority of evidence suggests that when the acute workload exceeds the chronic workload, there is an increase in injury risk. The evidence also supports that a low chronic workload with a low ACWR should be considered as an injury risk factor. Strength of Recommendation: Based on the American Family Physician’s Strength of Recommendation Taxonomy, there is level A evidence to support the sRPE ACWR as a risk factor for noncontract injuries in elite athletes.
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