Insurance claims data: a possible solution for a national sports injury surveillance system? An evaluation of data information against ASIDD and consensus statements on sports injury surveillance

Abstract

BackgroundBefore preventive actions can be suggested for sports injuries at the national level, a solid surveillance system is required in order to study their epidemiology, risk factors and mechanisms. There are guidelines for sports injury data collection and classifications in the literature for that purpose. In Sweden, 90% of all athletes (57/70 sports federations) are insured with the same insurance company and data from their database could be a foundation for studies on acute sports injuries at the national level.ObjectiveTo evaluate the usefulness of sports injury insurance claims data in sports injury surveillance at the national level.MethodA database with 27 947 injuries was exported to an Excel file. Access to the corresponding text files was also obtained. Data were reviewed on available information, missing information and dropouts. Comparison with ASIDD (Australian Sports Injury Data Dictionary) and existing consensus statements in the literature (football (soccer), rugby union, tennis, cricket and thoroughbred horse racing) was performed in a structured manner.ResultComparison with ASIDD showed that 93% of the suggested data items were present in the database to at least some extent. Compliance with the consensus statements was generally high (13/18). Almost all claims (83%) contained text information concerning the injury.ConclusionsRelatively high-quality sports injury data can be obtained from a specific insurance company at the national level in Sweden. The database has the potential to be a solid base for research on acute sports injuries in different sports at the national level.

Mapping equestrian injuries and injury incidence in Sweden using insurance registry data

“…Diagnoses were provided by either a medical doctor, physiotherapist, or other medical professional. This database has previously been evaluated for reporting quality and established as a valid surveillance system . Data included information on age (0‐6, 7‐12, 13‐20, 21‐40, 41 years or older), which had been predefined by the Swedish Sports Association, gender, date of injury, nature of injury, injured body region and if the rider had a license for competitive riding.…”

Incidence and severity of reported acute sports injuries in 35 sports using insurance registry data

“…The data contained information on sport, gender, age, and permanent medical impairment (PMI) and death. Duplicates were deleted and missing data were quality checked with the texts in the database (Åman et al., ).…”

“…At the time of this study, almost 90% of all athletes in Sweden, 57 of 70 sports federations, had their mandatory accident insurance at the same insurance company. Several studies have shown that data from insurance companies can be useful in sports injury research (Roos et al., ; Soderman et al., ; Finch, ; Forssblad et al., ; King et al., ; Gavrielov‐Yusim & Friger, ), and an evaluation of the data included in the Swedish insurance database has shown that it has the potential to be used for research on acute injuries in different sports at national level (Åman et al., ). The advantages with this database is that the information regarding injuries and claims is routinely kept in a systematic and structured manner covering almost all athletes of all ages and levels of sport nationwide.…”

How to get a better picture of the ACL injury problem? A call to systematically include conservatively managed patients in ACL registries

“…They found that ACL tears represented up to 30% of all recreational alpine ski injuries in women. In Sweden, 90% of athletes have insurance in a single company via their playing license, so that reliable statistics on severe injuries can be collected 9. We would recommend similar initiatives be taken on a more systematic basis by sports associations and federations, particularly those exposing underage athletes to a high injury risk.…”