Sports injury surveillance and protective equipment.

Protective equipment is adopted in the hope of reducing the incidence and severity of injuries. To objectively assess the effectiveness of such equipment, injury data is required prior to and after the introduction of this countermeasure. In many cases, there has been no appropriate evaluation of the countermeasure. Pre- and postintervention data is vital to the protective equipment developer. Such information may be obtained from injury surveillance systems. Other information which is just as vital but not obtainable from such a system is injury tolerance levels. Additional information from injury surveillance such as the type of protective equipment worn, its condition prior to and after impact, and a description of the event leading to injury would be most valuable.