Epidemiology of time-loss injuries in English community-level rugby union

Abstract

ObjectivesUsing a prospective cohort study design, to establish the incidence and nature of time-loss injuries in English community rugby and to assess the differences between different playing levels.SettingEnglish community rugby clubs.ParticipantsInjury information for 4635 matches was collected during seasons 2009/2010 (46 clubs), 2010/2011(67 clubs) and 2011/2012 (76 clubs). Clubs were subdivided into groups A (semiprofessional), B (amateur) and C (recreational) for analysis.Primary and secondary outcome measuresAny injury resulting in 8 days or greater absence from match play was reported by injury management staff at the clubs. The primary outcome measure was injury incidence (per 1000 player match-hours) and the secondary outcome measure was severity (ie, days absence).ResultsOverall match injury incidence was 16.9 injuries per 1000 player match-hours. Incidence was higher for group A (21.7; 95% CI 19.8 to 23.6) compared with group B (16.6; 95% CI 15.2 to 17.9) and C (14.2; 95% CI 13.0 to 15.5, both p<0.001). The mean time-loss was 7.6 weeks absence, with knee and shoulder injuries the most severe with mean absences of 11.6 and 9.3 weeks, respectively. Half of all injuries occurred to the lower limb, with knee and ankle joint/ligament injuries the most common diagnoses. Shoulder joint/ligament injuries were the most common and severe upper limb injuries. Contact events accounted for 80% of all injuries and tackles accounted for 50%. Running was the most common non-contact injury event, of which 56% were hamstring injuries.ConclusionsMore time-loss injuries occur at higher levels of community rugby. Injury prevention strategies should focus on good technique in the tackle and conditioning exercises for the knee, ankle, hamstrings and shoulder.

Efficacy of a Movement Control Injury-Prevention Programme in an Adult Community Rugby Union Population; A Cluster Randomised Controlled Trial

“…Intention-to-treat analysis from a neuromuscular-control intervention study in community adult men's Australian Rules Football, 33 another sport with a high level of physical person-to-person contact, displayed a likely beneficial 20% reduction (RR, 0.8; 90% CI 0.6-1.0) in lowerlimb injury incidence and a likely beneficial 50% reduction (RR, 0.5; 90% CI 0.3-1.0) in knee injuries. Given that ~50% of all community rugby injuries are lower-limb injuries, 11 our findings support the completion of these lower-limb exercises as part of a warm-up before training and matches.…”

“…11 Control exercises may have offered better physical preparation for players than current 'normal practice', which is supported by feedback from pilot study delivery agents (unpublished data; Attwood, 2017). Results may indicate that there is a need to improve warm-up practices in this population.…”

“…11 Injury incidence varies across these playing categories, 11 and therefore, recruited clubs were stratified by playing level before being randomly allocated to the intervention or control group.…”

“…11 Importantly, injury prevention programmes have reduced knee (70% reduction) and ankle sprains (62% reduction) 17 as well as hamstring strains (70% reduction). 18 Although FIFA 11+ was designed to reduce lower-limb injuries in soccer, implementing the programme in basketball reduced lower-limb injury by 32%.…”

Epidemiology of Injury in Elite English Schoolboy Rugby Union: A 3-Year Study Comparing Different Competitions

“…6 Injury surveillance investigating the nature of injuries sustained at the community level of men's rugby union has also been ongoing since 2009. 7 Unfortunately, no longitudinal injury surveillance is currently underway for youth rugby in England despite the concerns of parents 8 and health care professionals 9 regarding game safety. Based on the studies carried out in youth rugby, the injury risk (16-49/1000 player-hours) does not appear to be as great as the rate in the professional game.…”