002 Injury incidence and patterns in male youth elite level football players: a prospective study. (3rd March 2020)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Rommers, Nikki; Rössler, Roland; Lenoir, Matthieu; Witvrouw, Erik; D'Hondt, Eva
• Is Part Of: British journal of sports medicine. Volume 54(2020)Supplement 1
• Page Start: A1
• Page End: A1
• Publication Date: 2020-03-03
• Subjects: Sports medicine -- Periodicals; 617.1027
• DOI: 10.1136/bjsports-2020-IOCAbstracts.2
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0306-3674

Abstract

Abstract : Background: Professional youth academies recruit skilled young players from eight years onwards and provide them with a specialised development programme. The high training volume and intensity, however, could lead to a high injury incidence from a young age onwards. Large prospective studies in the youngest age categories are currently lacking. Objective: To describe injury incidence and patterns in youth elite football players. Design: Prospective epidemiological study. Setting: Youth academies of seven Belgian premier league football clubs. Participants: 689 male players of the U10 to U15 age categories (mean age 12.4±1.7 years). Main outcome measurements: Injuries and individual exposure time were monitored according to the consensus statement by the academies' medical and coaching staff, respectively. Results: During one competitive season, including 128, 995 hours of football, 547 injuries were registered in 337 players. Most injuries (86%) occurred at the lower extremities, with the knee (21.0%), thigh (18.1%) and groin (17.9%) as main injury locations. Muscle injuries comprised 34.6%, tendon injuries 25.6%, hematoma 17.0%, and sprains 11.0% of all registered injuries. 47.5% of the injuries were classified as overuse-related and 11.9% were recurrent injuries. Contact was involved in 29.1% of the injuries. Severe injuries, causing more than 28 days of absence, made up 18.8% of all injuries, with the proportion of severe injuries peaking in the U14 and U15 age categories. The total injury incidence was 4.24 injuries per 1000h of exposure, 2.76 per 1000h of training and 14.37 per 1000h of match play. Overall injury incidence increased gradually with age, from 2.57 injuries per 1000h in the U10 to 6.61 injuries per 1000h in U15. Seasonal variations indicated peaks in injury incidence in September and January. Conclusions: The high injury incidence and proportion of overuse injuries and large proportion of severe injuries highlights the importance of an early focus on preventive measures.