Identifying high risk loading conditions for in-season injury in elite Australian football players. Issue 1 (January 2018)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Stares, Jordan; Dawson, Brian; Peeling, Peter; Heasman, Jarryd; Rogalski, Brent; Drew, Michael; Colby, Marcus; Dupont, Gregory; Lester, Leanne
• Is Part Of: Journal of science and medicine in sport. Volume 21:Issue 1(2018)
• Page Start: 46
• Page End: 51
• Publication Date: 2018-01
• Subjects: Training load -- Injury -- Acute:chronic workload ratio -- Australian football -- Global positioning system; Sports sciences -- Periodicals; Sports medicine -- Periodicals; Exercise -- Physiological aspects -- Periodicals; Sports -- physiology -- Periodicals; Sports Medicine -- Periodicals; Sportgeneeskunde; 617.102705
• DOI: 10.1016/j.jsams.2017.05.012
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 1440-2440

Abstract

Abstract: Objectives: To examine different timeframes for calculating acute to chronic workload ratio (ACWR) and whether this variable is associated with intrinsic injury risk in elite Australian football players. Design: Prospective cohort study. Methods: Internal (session rating of perceived exertion: sRPE) and external (GPS distance and sprint distance) workload and injury data were collected from 70 players from one AFL club over 4 seasons. Various acute (1–2 weeks) and chronic (3–8 weeks) timeframes were used to calculate ACWRs: these and chronic load categories were then analysed to determine the injury risk in the subsequent month. Poisson regression with robust errors within a generalised estimating equation were utilised to determine incidence rate ratios (IRR). Results: Altering acute and/or chronic timeframes did not improve the ability to detect high injury risk conditions above the commonly used 1:4 week ACWR. Twenty-seven ACWR/chronic load combinations were found to be "high risk conditions" (IRR > 1, p < 0.05) for injury within 7 days. Most (93%) of these conditions occurred when chronic load was low or very low and ACWR was either low (<0.6) or high (>1.5). Once a high injury risk condition was entered, the elevated risk persisted for up to 28 days. Conclusions: Injury risk was greatest when chronic load was low and ACWR was either low or high. This heightened risk remained for up to 4 weeks. There was no improvement in the ability to identify high injury risk situations by altering acute or chronic time periods from 1:4 weeks.