Occupation and other risk factors for injury among enlisted U.S. Army Soldiers

Anderson, Morgan K.; Grier, Tyson; Canham-Chervak, Michelle; Bushman, Timothy T.; Jones, Bruce H.

doi:10.1016/j.puhe.2015.02.003

Cited by 40 publications

(19 citation statements)

References 28 publications

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“…Earlier researchers 34,36 who aimed to identify risk factors for musculoskeletal injuries in military populations have commonly found body composition measures such as a high BMI to be risk factors for injury. However, we did not find that body fat percentage was a risk factor for injury and only observed a BMI difference in the spine-injury group.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Physical and Performance Characteristics Related to Unintentional Musculoskeletal Injury in Special Forces Operators: A Prospective Analysis

Heebner

Abt

Lovalekar

et al. 2017

Journal of Athletic Training

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Context: Seventy-seven percent of musculoskeletal injuries sustained by United States Army Special Forces Operators are preventable. Identification of predictive characteristics will promote the development of screening methods to augment injury-prevention programs.Objective: To determine physical and performance characteristics that predict musculoskeletal injuries.Setting: Clinical laboratory. Patients or Other Participants: A total of 95 Operators (age ¼ 32.7 6 5.1 years, height ¼ 179.8 6 6.9 cm, mass ¼ 89.9 6 12.7 kg).Main Outcome Measure(s): Laboratory testing consisted of body composition, aerobic and anaerobic capacity, upper and lower body strength and flexibility, balance, and biomechanical evaluation. Injury data were captured for 12 months after laboratory testing. Injury frequencies, cross-tabulations, and relative risks (RRs) were calculated to evaluate the relationships between physical characteristics and injury proportions. Between-groups differences (injured versus uninjured) were assessed using appropriate t tests or Mann-Whitney U tests.Results Conclusions: Knee-extension and shoulder-retraction strength were risk factors for musculoskeletal injury in Operators. Less trunk-flexion and -extension strength, higher body mass index, lower aerobic capacity, and increased ground reaction forces during landing were characteristics that may also contribute to musculoskeletal injury. Having 2 or more risk factors resulted in a greater injury proportion (v 2 ¼ 13.512, P ¼ .015); however, more research is needed. Athletic trainers working in the military or similar high-demand settings can use these data to augment screening and injury-prevention protocols.Key Words: military athletes, strength, flexibility, biomechanics Key PointsDeficits in knee and shoulder strength were risk factors for musculoskeletal injury in Operators. Having more than 1 risk factor significantly increased the Operators' risk for musculoskeletal injury. M usculoskeletal injury due to training and recreation is a serious and often underrecognized problem in military populations.1À4 These injuries place a large burden on our military personnel (operational and medical) and can directly affect the readiness of Special Operations Forces (SOF) across various branches of service.4À8 Epidemiologic data 4,5 have demonstrated that a large proportion of the musculoskeletal injuries seen in basic military forces and in the SOF community occurred during training and were preventable. These researchers 5 have defined preventable injuries as those that can be reduced through the use of injuryprevention programs by modifying the characteristics related to musculoskeletal injury. The leadership has also recognized that these high incidence and recurrence rates of injury may negatively affect the quality of life after service. Athletic trainers and other medical staff within the armed forces have a unique opportunity to combat this problem through screening and prevention initiatives.Physical training is a critical part of enhancing physical and ...

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Physical and Performance Characteristics Related to Unintentional Musculoskeletal Injury in Special Forces Operators: A Prospective Analysis

Heebner

Abt

Lovalekar

et al. 2017

Journal of Athletic Training

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“…Demographic factors that increase risk Female sex 18,29,47,48 Older age 15,23,34,49 Anatomic factors that increase risk High foot arches 13,40 Knock knees 14 High Q angles 14 Physical fitness characteristics and effects on injury Low aerobic fitness -increases risk 9,18,21,34,35,47,49 Low muscle endurance -increases risk 9,18,21,34,35,47,49 Muscle strength -no association with injury risk 12,15,29 Low and high flexibility -increases injury risk 5,12,15,23,29,37 Body composition -low and high BMI increase injury risk 9,16,34,35,47 Health behaviors that increase risk Sedentary Lifestyle/inactivity 9,15,16,29,47 Tobacco use 12,15,17,…”

Section: Intrinsic Risk Factorsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…As shown in Table 1, the study of injury causes and risk factors continues. The APHC continues to monitor injury surveillance data and to investigate questions about risk associated with specific concerns, such as use of minimalist shoes, 33 specific military occupations, 34 and physical training activities (i.e., extreme conditioning programs, 35 running, 36 and functional movement screening 37 ). Running has continued to be a leading trainingrelated cause of injury.…”

Section: Effective In Reducing Injury Riskmentioning

confidence: 99%

Musculoskeletal training injury prevention in the U.S. Army: Evolution of the science and the public health approach

Jones¹,

Hauschild²,

Canham-Chervak³

2018

Journal of Science and Medicine in Sport

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Injuries cause more morbidity among soldiers in the U.S. Army than any other health condition. Over two-thirds of U.S. soldiers' injuries occur gradually from cumulative micro-traumatic damage to the musculoskeletal system as a result of physical training activities. Paradoxically, the very physical training activities required to improve soldier performance also result in injury. Determining the amounts and types of physical training that maximize performance while minimizing injuries requires scientific evidence. This evidence must be incorporated into a framework that ensures scientific gaps are addressed and prevention efforts are evaluated. The five-step public health approach has proven to be an effective construct for Army public health to organize and build an injury prevention program. Steps include: 1) surveillance to define the magnitude of the problem, 2) research and field investigations to identify causes and risk factors, 3) intervention trials and systematic reviews to determine what works to address leading risk factors, 4) program and policy implementation to execute prevention, and 5) program evaluation to assess effectiveness. Dissemination is also needed to ensure availability of scientific lessons learned. Although the steps may not be conducted in order, the capability to perform each step is necessary to sustain a successful program and make progress toward injury control and prevention. As with many U.S. public health successes (e.g., seatbelts, smoking cessation), the full process can take decades. As described in this paper, the U.S. Army uses the public health approach to assure that, as the science evolves, it is translated into effective prevention.

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“…Women's and men's average aerobic and muscular performance scores, as measured by the APFT, are approximately 23%-63% and 17%-47% lower, respectively, at the BCT level compared with the operational population. 10,15,16 Based on these differences, there may also be differing results in odds of injury and gender at the operational level. The association of gender and odds of injury has not been investigated among "either accidental or on purpose and occurring when strong sudden forces are applied to the body (traumatic) or smaller forces are applied to the body over and over again (overuse)."…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%