Tonje Wåle Flørenes1, Stig Heir, Lars Nordsletten, Roald Bahr. 1. Oslo Sports Trauma Research Center, Department of Sports Medicine, Norwegian School of Sport Sciences, PB 4014 Ullevål Stadion, N-0806 Oslo, Norway. tonje.wale.florenes@nih.no
Abstract
BACKGROUND: Limited knowledge exists on injuries among professional freestyle skiers. OBJECTIVE: To describe the risk of injury and injury patterns among competitive World Cup (WC) freestyle skiers during the competitive season. METHODS: Retrospective interviews were conducted with WC freestyle skiers from 20 nations in a cohort study at the end of the 2006-2007, 2007-2008 and 2008-2009 winter seasons, and all acute injuries occurring during the 4.5 month competitive season were recorded. If an athlete was not present, we interviewed his or her coach or medical personnel. RESULTS: A total of 291 acute injuries were recorded among 662 WC freestyle skiers. Ninety-three injuries (32%) were severe in nature, defined as >28 days absence from training/competition. This corresponds to 14 (95% CI 11.2 to 16.9) injuries per 100 athletes per season. The most frequently injured body part was the knee with 77 injuries (27%) and 37 of these were severe. The head was the next most commonly injured body part with 39 (13%) injuries. As many as 106 injuries (36%) occurred during WC/World Ski Championship competitions, corresponding to an injury rate of 15.6 injuries per 1000 runs (95% CI 12.7 to 18.6). There were no significant differences between men and women in either the injury rate or the rate seen for knee injuries. CONCLUSIONS: The injury rate among WC athletes in freestyle skiing is high, especially for severe injuries. The knee is the most commonly injured body part, also dominated by severe injuries. We found no significant difference in the injury rate related to sex.
BACKGROUND: Limited knowledge exists on injuries among professional freestyle skiers. OBJECTIVE: To describe the risk of injury and injury patterns among competitive World Cup (WC) freestyle skiers during the competitive season. METHODS: Retrospective interviews were conducted with WC freestyle skiers from 20 nations in a cohort study at the end of the 2006-2007, 2007-2008 and 2008-2009 winter seasons, and all acute injuries occurring during the 4.5 month competitive season were recorded. If an athlete was not present, we interviewed his or her coach or medical personnel. RESULTS: A total of 291 acute injuries were recorded among 662 WC freestyle skiers. Ninety-three injuries (32%) were severe in nature, defined as >28 days absence from training/competition. This corresponds to 14 (95% CI 11.2 to 16.9) injuries per 100 athletes per season. The most frequently injured body part was the knee with 77 injuries (27%) and 37 of these were severe. The head was the next most commonly injured body part with 39 (13%) injuries. As many as 106 injuries (36%) occurred during WC/World Ski Championship competitions, corresponding to an injury rate of 15.6 injuries per 1000 runs (95% CI 12.7 to 18.6). There were no significant differences between men and women in either the injury rate or the rate seen for knee injuries. CONCLUSIONS: The injury rate among WC athletes in freestyle skiing is high, especially for severe injuries. The knee is the most commonly injured body part, also dominated by severe injuries. We found no significant difference in the injury rate related to sex.
Authors: Miguel Ángel Gallo-Vallejo; Juan Carlos de la Cruz-Márquez; Adrián de la Cruz-Campos; Juan Carlos de la Cruz-Campos; Francisco Luis Pestaña-Melero; Ginés Carmona-Ruiz; Luz María Gallo-Galán Journal: BMJ Open Sport Exerc Med Date: 2017-03-17
Authors: M Stępien-Słodkowska; K Ficek; J Eider; A Leońska-Duniec; A Maciejewska-Karłowska; M Sawczuk; A Zarębska; Z Jastrzębski; A Grenda; K Kotarska; P Cięszczyk Journal: Biol Sport Date: 2013-01-21 Impact factor: 2.806