The association football medical research programme: an audit of injuries in professional football

Abstract

Objectives-To undertake a prospective epidemiological study of the injuries sustained in English professional football over two competitive seasons. Methods-Player injuries were annotated by club medical staV at 91 professional football clubs. A specific injury audit questionnaire was used together with a weekly form that documented each club's current injury status. Results-A total of 6030 injuries were reported over the two seasons with an average of 1.3 injuries per player per season. The mean (SD) number of days absent for each injury was 24.2 (40.2), with 78% of the injuries leading to a minimum of one competitive match being missed. The injury incidence varied throughout the season, with training injuries peaking during July (p<0.05) and match injuries peaking during August (p<0.05). Competition injuries represented 63% of those reported, significantly (p<0.01) more of these injuries occurring towards the end of both halves. Strains (37%) and sprains (19%) were the major injury types, the lower extremity being the site of 87% of the injuries reported. Most injury mechanisms were classified as being non-contact (58%). Re-injuries accounted for 7% of all injuries, 66% of these being classified as either a strain or a sprain. The severity of re-injuries was greater than the initial injury (p<0.01). Conclusions-Professional football players are exposed to a high risk of injury and there is a need to investigate ways of reducing this risk. Areas that warrant attention include the training programmes implemented by clubs during various stages of the season, the factors contributing to the pattern of injuries during matches with respect to time, and the rehabilitation protocols employed by clubs. (Br J Sports Med 2001;35:43-47)

Altered neuromuscular control of leg stiffness following soccer-specific exercise

“…Repeated SSC exercise performed over a prolonged period of time is likely to lead to modified musculotendon unit behaviour, altered stiffness regulation, impaired function and reduced dynamic knee stability (McLean et al 2007;Nicol et al 2006). Fatigue during soccer has been associated with increased injury risk in adult (Hawkins et al 2001) and youth football (Price et al 2004). It has been speculated that altered leg stiffness and movement control during a soccer-match contributes to the increased injury risk associated with fatigue (Cone et al 2012).…”

The Efficacy of Exercise in Preventing Injury in Adult Male Football: A Systematic Review of Randomised Controlled Trials

“…The age used for inclusion was 16 years, as adult teams often include players of this age [8,[38][39][40][41]. This is also in accordance with the FIFA Laws of the Game, which are rules for players aged 16 and over and may be adjusted for those under 16 [37].…”

“…Hamstring strains are one of the most common injuries at professional football clubs, accounting for 12-16% of all injuries [5,39,58,59]. It is believed that they often occur during rapid eccentric loading when they are stretched beyond the optimal torque for generating tension, notably during sprinting [52,58,60].…”

The effect of repetitive ankle perturbations on muscle reaction time and muscle activity

“…It is reported that 77-83% of all ankle sprains are focal to the lateral ligament complex (Hawkins et al, 2001;Price et al, 2004;Woods et al, 2003), with excessive loading during inversion and plantar flexion the most common mechanism of injury (Ferran & Maffulli, 2006;Kaminski et al, 2013). When the foot is forced into a compromised position, the mechanoreceptors in the ankle ligaments and joint capsule sense the extreme or sudden movements and initiate a dynamic restraint (Hertel, 2002;Konradsen et al, 1997;Hertel, 2000;Jackson et al, 2009;Michelson & Hutchins, 1995).…”