Health‐Related Incidents among Intercollegiate Wheelchair Basketball Players

Abstract

Background Studies have revealed a higher incidence of injury and illness among elite adaptive athletes when compared to non‐disabled athletes in the Paralympics and Olympics. However, sport‐specific health care incidence rates and patterns outside of the Paralympics have been poorly described. To date, there are no prospective studies focused on injury or illness rates among intercollegiate wheelchair basketball players. Objective To determine the incidence of sports‐related injuries and illnesses among men's and women's intercollegiate wheelchair basketball teams throughout a season. We hypothesized that injury rates among the intercollegiate wheelchair basketball players would be similar to or greater than those of previously published National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) nondisabled basketball players and that injuries would most commonly affect the upper extremities. Design Prospective surveillance study. Setting Men's and women's intercollegiate wheelchair basketball teams in Arlington, Texas. Participants Twenty‐eight (14 male, 14 female) of the 29 (15 male, 14 female) eligible adult athletes playing on an intercollegiate men's or women's wheelchair basketball team during the 2018‐2019 season. Interventions Completion of a repeatable, electronic, web‐app injury and illness survey during the season, as well as separate pre‐ and post‐season injury and illness surveys. Main Outcome Measures Injury rates throughout the season based on athlete‐exposures and relative risk (RR) of injury of intercollegiate wheelchair basketball players compared to NCAA nondisabled basketball players. Description of onset, location, diagnosis, medical evaluation, and missed time from sport related to injuries and illnesses. Results Sixty‐two health‐related incidents, including 48 injuries and 14 illnesses, were prospectively reported during the season. Overall injury incidence rates were 12.2 (95% confidence interval [95% CI] 7.4 to 17.4) and 13.1 (95% CI 7.8 to 18.4) injuries per 1000 athlete‐exposures among male and female athletes, respectively. These equated to RRs of 1.53 (95% CI 1.03 to 2.27) (male) and 2.01 (95% CI 1.34 to 3.02) (female) when compared to the rates published previously on NCAA nondisabled basketball players, indicating a statistically significant increase in injury risk. Injuries most commonly involved the upper extremities (56.3%). Illnesses commonly involved the gastrointestinal (35.7%) or respiratory (21.4%) systems. Conclusions This is the first prospective study to report incidence of sports‐related injuries and illnesses throughout an intercollegiate wheelchair basketball season. Overall injury rates reported were higher than prior NCAA nondisabled intercollegiate basketball reports. This reinforces the need to establish an accessible network of health care support and injury prevention strategies for these athletes.

Sports-Related Health Problems in Para-Sports: A Systematic Review With Quality Assessment

“…A total of 34 studies investigated the relationship between impairment and sports-related health problem occurrence, 5,6,9,10,13,19-21,29,31,36,39,40,42-44,50,52-55,57,60-62,66,72,74-76,78,80,85 and 18 studies investigated the relationship between the type of sports and sports-related health problem occurrence. 2,5,6,19,20,23-25,29,50,54,55,59,74,78,88,89,92 Due to the large variety in the respective type of impairment and type of sports in the included studies, it was impossible to define any single representative relation between these risk factors and health problem occurrence (Appendix 4, available online).…”

“…A total of 34 studies investigated the relationship between impairment and sports-related health problem occurrence, 5 , 6 , 9 , 10 , 13 , 19 - 21 , 29 , 31 , 36 , 39 , 40 , 42 - 44 , 50 , 52 - 55 , 57 , 60 - 62 , 66 , 72 , 74 - 76 , 78 , 80 , 85 and 18 studies investigated the relationship between the type of sports and sports-related health problem occurrence. 2 , 5 , 6 , 19 , 20 , 23 - 25 , 29 , 50 , 54 , 55 , 59 , 74 , 78 , 88 , 89 , 92 Due...…”

“…The level of play of the participants in the remaining studies was not mentioned. An overview of included sports and impairment types is provided in Tables 1 and 2 40%-65% 47,53,92 23%-52% 47,53,92 Boccia 6%-11% 20,92 8-12 55%-80% 73,86,92 20%-23% 8-64 20,22,39,45,54,92b 3 76g 1-7 11,29,55c 20%-25% 20,54 2-3 45u 7%-67% 20,22,54,62,76,92 3-13 high risk of bias. An overview of the quality assessment is in Appendices 5 and 6, available online.…”

Bienestar Psicológico, Fortaleza Mental y Vitalidad Subjetiva en Deportistas con Discapacidad (Wellbeing, Mental Toughness and Subjective Vitality in Athletes with Disabilities)

“…Al comparar atletas con y sin capacidad diferente encontramos que existen semejanzas en algunas características psicológicas (Gómez-Marcos et al, 2019) relacionadas con el rendimiento deportivo como el control del estrés o las habilidades mentales (Gomez-Marcos & Sanchez-Sanchez, 2019). Sin embargo, también observamos diferencias (Hall-López et al, 2022) en colectivos como los jugadores de baloncesto en sillas de ruedas, los cuales tuvieron mayor incide de lesiones en comparación con el resto (Kasitinon et al, 2020;Martin, 2017). En definitiva, los estudios indican que los deportistas con capacidad diferente posen sus propias características que requieren una intervención propia y no una simple adaptación de un programa de intervención psicológica.…”

Características Psicológicas en Deportistas con Discapacidad Física (Psychological Characteristics in athletes with physical disability)

“…Al parecer existen similitudes entre los atletas con y sin discapacidad (Gomez-Marcos & Sanchez-Sanchez, 2019;Kasitinon et al, 2020;Martin, 2017). En consecuencia, los programas de intervención psicológica son retomados desde el deporte convencional y llevados al deporte adaptado; no obstante, estos esquemas de intervención requieren de mayor investigación.…”