Acute hamstring strain injury in track‐and‐field athletes: A 3‐year observational study at the Penn Relay Carnival

Abstract

This study aimed to observe the incidence rates of hamstring strain injuries (HSIs) across different competition levels and ages during the Penn Relays Carnival. Over a 3-year period, all injuries treated by the medical staff were recorded. The type of injury, anatomic location, event in which the injury occurred, competition level, and demographic data were documented. Absolute and relative HSI (per 1000 participants) were determined, and odds ratios (ORs) were calculated between sexes, competition levels, and events. Throughout the study period 48,473 athletes registered to participate in the Penn Relays Carnival, with 118 HSIs treated by the medical team. High school girls displayed lesser risk of HSI than high school boys (OR = 0.55, P = 0.021), and masters athletes were more likely than high school- (OR = 4.26, P < 0.001) and college-level (OR = 3.55, P = 0.001) athletes to suffer HSI. The 4 × 400-m relay displayed a greater likelihood of HSI compared with the 4 × 100-m relay (OR = 1.77, P = 0.008). High school boys and masters-level athletes are most likely to suffer HSI, and there is higher risk in 400-m events compared with 100-m events.

Acute Injuries in Track and Field Athletes

“…That female athletes were less likely to sustain a minor orthopaedic injury is similar to observations from an earlier study examining the incidence of hamstring strain injuries in the same cohort. 28 In the aforementioned study, 28 male track and field athletes had a greater likelihood of sustaining a hamstring strain injury compared with female athletes (OR, 1.68-1.79), which is somewhat similar to the between-sex data presented in the current study for minor orthopaedic injury (OR, 1.36). An additional post hoc subanalysis, whereby hamstring strain injuries were removed, revealed no significant difference between lower limb strain injuries between male and female athletes (OR, 0.93 [95% CI, 0.50-1.75]), suggesting that the sex bias toward injury might be mediated mostly by a greater likelihood for male athletes to sustain hamstring strain injuries than female athletes.…”

Impact of exercise selection on hamstring muscle activation

“…They are the most prevalent injury in track and field,1 Australian Rules football2 and soccer,3 and up to 30% recur within 12 months 4. Upwards of 80% of HSIs involve the biceps femoris long head (BF LongHead ) muscle,5–7 and most injuries are thought to occur during the late swing phase of high-speed running 8.…”

Impact of the Nordic Hamstring and Hip Extension Exercises on Hamstring Architecture and Morphology: Implications for Injury Prevention

“…[1][2][3][4] Hamstring strains represent 60 the most common injury in athletics, [5] Australian Rules football, [6 7] and soccer [8] and as 61 many as 30% reoccur within 12 months. [9] These findings highlight the need for improved 62 hamstring injury prevention programs while also suggesting the possibility that these 63 programs should specifically target the BFLH.…”