Time-Loss Injuries in Karate: A Prospective Cohort Study of 4 Consecutive World Karate Championships

Abstract

Background: Prospective studies on injuries in martial arts competitions are scarce, especially those involving time-loss injuries. The upsurge of karate athletes competing in top-level karate competitions warrants elucidation of the time-loss injury risk. Purpose: To determine the time-loss injury proportion and incidence rate, describe the injury pattern among elite senior karate athletes, and compare the risk of time-loss injuries in male versus female athletes and in individual (ie, weight categories) versus team competitions (free-weight category). Study Design: Descriptive epidemiology study. Methods: Data were collected at 4 consecutive World Karate Championships (2010, 2012, 2014, and 2016). Injury incidence rates were calculated per 1000 athlete-exposures (IIRAE) and per 1000 minutes of exposure (IIRME), with 95% CIs. Subgroups were compared by calculating their rate ratios with 95% CIs. Results: A total of 506 injuries were recorded, of which 51 were time-loss injuries (10%). The overall time-loss injury rate was significantly lower for female versus male athletes and slightly lower for team versus individual competitions. Overall, 1.4% of all athletes sustained a time-loss injury, and the IIRAE and IIRME were 5.13 (95% CI, 3.82-6.74) and 1.98 (95% CI, 1.47-2.60), respectively. The most common type of time-loss injury was fracture (41%), followed by dislocation (20%) and concussion (12%). Conclusion: The time-loss injury incidence rate for top-level karate competitions found in this prospective study was relatively low. Comprehensive knowledge about the incidence of time-loss injuries during karate competitions represents an essential basis to develop effective strategies for injury prevention. Thus, the introduction of a uniform injury surveillance system in martial arts is of utmost importance.

Impact Force and Velocities for Kicking Strikes in Combat Sports: A Literature Review

“…Given the potential for injury from striking impacts, protective equipment has been made mandatory in some disciplines involving kicking strikes [ 129 , 130 ]. Despite this, injury prevalence research has indicated that only a limited proportion of participants (26.15%) reported using protective equipment during training sessions in which injury occurred [ 34 ].…”

Evaluasi Komponen Kondisi Fisik Atlet Karate

“…Karate merupakan salah satu cabang olahraga beladiri body contact, dimana dalam pelaksanaan pertandingannya dilakukan dengan intensitas tinggi serta sangat rentan dengan terjadinya cedera (Augustovičová et al, 2019) (Pal et al, 2020). Kondisi ini pada gilirannya menuntut para atlet agar dapat mempersiapkan diri dengan sebaik-baiknya.…”

Nutritional Considerations for Injury Prevention and Recovery in Combat Sports

“…Numerous examples of research are available on the injury prevalence in various combat sports such as wrestling [ 25 , 26 , 27 , 28 ], judo [ 29 , 30 , 31 ], taekwondo [ 32 , 33 , 34 , 35 , 36 , 37 ], boxing [ 38 , 39 , 40 , 41 , 42 ], and karate [ 43 , 44 , 45 ], as well as comparisons of injury prevalence among Olympic combat sports [ 2 , 46 , 47 , 48 ] and martial arts [ 1 , 49 ]. Due to the heterogeneity of these studies in terms of participants (e.g., elite vs. amateur, children or adolescents vs. adults, and male vs. female), injury definitions, surveillance methods (e.g., self-reporting, medical records, and injury surveillance systems), and characteristics of the reported injuries (e.g., competition injuries vs. training injuries and acute vs. chronic injuries), it is difficult to get an overall view of the injury rate, type, location, and severity.…”

“…However, the greatest injury burden risk was found in judo when both the incidence and severity were taken into consideration [ 2 ]. The incidence rate for time-loss injuries in top-level karate athletes was reported to be relatively low (10%) based on the data collected at four consecutive World Karate Championships (2010, 2012, 2014, and 2016), and these injuries were due to fractures (41%), dislocations (20%), or concussions (12%) [ 44 ].…”