Background:Ankle injury is the most common injury in men’s and women’s basketball, regardless of the level of competition.Purpose:To use the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Injury Surveillance Program/System (ISP/ISS) to review the 10-year epidemiology of ankle injuries in men’s and women’s collegiate basketball players.Study Design:Descriptive epidemiology study.Methods:The NCAA ISP was queried for men’s and women’s collegiate basketball ankle injury data from the 2004 through 2014 academic years. Ankle injury rates were calculated based on injuries per athlete-exposure (AE). Injury proportion ratios (IPRs) were determined by comparing variables between sexes. Activity and position of injury were also studied.Results:Over the 10-year study period, most ankle injuries in collegiate basketball occurred in the preseason (female, 1.45/1000 AEs; male, 2.00/1000 AEs), were contact related (female, 50.4%; male, 57.6%), were treated conservatively (female, 98.5%; male, 99.3%), and were new injuries (female, 78.0%; male, 78.9%), resulting in a time loss of less than 7 days (female, 62.7%; male, 65.2%). The most common injury types were lateral ligament complex tears (female, 83.5%; male, 80.0%), deltoid ligament tears (female, 5.6%; male, 7.2%), and high ankle sprains (female, 7.1%; male, 7.0%). Guards experienced the highest rate of ankle injuries in competition (female, 50.1%; male, 43.3%), and rebounding was found to be the most common activity during an injury (female, 30.3%; male, 34.4%). The rate of ankle injuries was significantly lower in women than in men (IPR, 0.81 [95% CI, 0.75-0.88]).Conclusion:This study found that most ankle injuries in collegiate basketball occurred during the preseason, were contact related, were treated conservatively, and were new injuries that resulted in a time loss of less than 7 days.

Background: The success of anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) reconstruction is influenced by effective rehabilitation. Previously published, comprehensive systematic reviews evaluating rehabilitation after ACL reconstruction have studied Level-I and II evidence published through 2012. Interval studies continue to evaluate the efficacy of various rehabilitative modalities.Methods: A total of 824 articles from 2012 to 2020 were identified using multiple search engines. Fifty Level-I or II studies met inclusion criteria and were evaluated using the Consolidated Standards of Reporting Trials (CONSORT) criteria and National Institutes of Health (NIH) Study Quality Assessment Tools.Results: Accelerated rehabilitation can be effective for patients with semitendinosus-gracilis grafts. Blood flow restriction (BFR) training with high-intensity exercise is not effective for ACL reconstruction recovery. Postoperative bracing does not offer any advantages or improve limb asymmetry. Cryotherapy is an effective analgesic when used perioperatively. The early introduction of open kinetic chain exercises may improve ACL reconstruction outcomes, and high-intensity plyometric exercise is not effective. Estimated pre-injury capacity (EPIC) levels may be more accurate than the Limb Symmetry Index (LSI) when using functional test results to predict reinjury rates, and hip external rotation strength may be the most accurate predictor of the hop test performance. Nerve blocks can provide postoperative analgesia with minimal complication risk. Neuromuscular electrical stimulation is effective when used independently and in combination with rehabilitative exercises. Psychological readiness should be evaluated both objectively and subjectively before allowing patients to safely return to sport. Electromyography biofeedback may help to regain muscular function, and whole-body vibration therapy can improve postural control. Supervised rehabilitation is more effective than unsupervised rehabilitation.Conclusions: Various rehabilitative modalities following ACL reconstruction are effective in improving surgical outcomes and return-to-sport rates. Further evidence and improved study design are needed to further validate modalities including accelerated rehabilitation, BFR training, functional testing, and return-to-sport criteria.

Background:Lumbar spine injuries in National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) athletes have not been well studied.Purpose:To describe the epidemiology of lumbar spine injuries in NCAA athletes during the 2009/2010 through 2014/2015 academic years utilizing the NCAA Injury Surveillance Program (ISP).Study Design:Descriptive epidemiology study.Methods:A voluntary convenience sample of NCAA varsity teams from 25 sports was examined. Mechanism of injury, injury recurrence, and time lost from sport were recorded. Injury rates were calculated as the number of injuries divided by the total number of athlete-exposures (AEs). AEs were defined as any student participation in 1 NCAA-sanctioned practice or competition. Injury rate ratios and injury proportion ratios were calculated to compare the rates within and between sports by event type, season, patient sex, mechanism, injury recurrence, and time lost from sport. Comparisons between sexes were made utilizing data that had both male and female samples.Results:An estimated 37,435 lumbar spine injuries were identified. The overall rate of injuries was 6.01 per 1000 AEs. The rate of injuries was 4.94 per 1000 AEs in men compared with 3.94 per 1000 AEs in women for sex-comparable sports. Men were 1.25 times more likely than women to suffer a lumbar spine injury. Men’s football (24.62 injuries/1000 AEs) and women’s gymnastics (11.46 injuries/1000 AEs) had the highest rates of lumbar spine injuries. Athletes were 1.83 and 3.71 times more likely to sustain a lumbar spine injury during the preseason than the regular season or postseason, respectively. Noncontact was the most common mechanism of injury (38%). Injury recurrence was most common in men’s outdoor track (58%). Most injuries resulted in less than 24 hours of time loss from event participation (61%).Conclusion:The rate of lumbar spine injuries was high in NCAA athletes, and injuries commonly recurred (20%). In general, men were more likely to sustain a lumbar spine injury compared with women. Higher injury rates occurred during competition and via a noncontact mechanism of injury. In addition to prevention programs, reconditioning programs should be considered to prevent these injuries.

Background: Low back injuries are common in collegiate football players and can frequently lead to persistent pain, reinjuries, and time lost from participation.

Background: Lumbar spine injuries (LSIs) are common in both men’s and women’s National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) basketball players and can frequently lead to reinjuries and persistent pain. Purpose: To describe the epidemiology of an LSI in collegiate men’s and women’s basketball during the 2009-2010 through 2013-2014 academic years. Study Design: Descriptive epidemiology study. Methods: The incidence and characteristics of LSIs were identified utilizing the NCAA Injury Surveillance Program (ISP). Rates of injury were calculated as the number of injuries divided by the total number of athlete-exposures (AEs). AEs were defined as any student participation in 1 NCAA-sanctioned practice or competition. Incidence rate ratios (IRRs) were then calculated to compare the rates of injury between season, event type, mechanism, injury recurrence, and time lost from sport. Results: The NCAA ISP reported 124 LSIs from an average of 28 and 29 men’s and women’s teams, respectively. These were used via validated weighting methodology to estimate a total of 5197 LSIs nationally. The rate of LSIs in women was 2.16 per 10,000 AEs, while men suffered LSIs at a rate of 3.47 per 10,000 AEs. Men were 1.61 times more likely to suffer an LSI compared with women. In men, an LSI was 3.48 times more likely to occur in competition when compared with practice, while in women, an LSI was 1.36 times more likely to occur in competition than in practice. Women suffered the highest LSI rate during the postseason, while the highest rate in men was during the regular season. The majority of both female (58.9%; n = 1004) and male (73.1%; n = 2353) athletes returned to play within 24 hours of injury. Conclusion: To date, this is the largest study to characterize LSIs in NCAA basketball and provides needed information on the prevalence and timing of these injuries. The majority of injuries in both sexes were new, and most athletes returned to play in less than 24 hours. Injury rates were highest during competition in both sexes.