Head, face and neck injury in youth rugby: Incidence and risk factors
- Authors: McIntosh, Andrew , McCrory, Paul , Finch, Caroline , Wolfe, Rory
- Date: 2010
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: British Journal of Sports Medicine Vol. 44, no. 3 (2010), p. 188-193
- Relation: http://purl.org/au-research/grants/nhmrc/565900
- Full Text: false
- Reviewed:
- Description: OBJECTIVES: In this study, the incidence of head, neck and facial injuries in youth rugby was determined, and the associated risk factors were assessed. DESIGN: Data were extracted from a cluster randomised controlled trial of headgear with the football teams as the unit of randomisation. No effect was observed for headgear use on injury rates, and the data were pooled. SETTING: General school and club-based community competitive youth rugby in the 2002 and 2003 seasons. PARTICIPANTS: Young male rugby union football players participating in under-13, under 15, under 18 and under 21 years competitions. Eighty-two teams participated in year 1 and 87 in year 2. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Injury rates for all body regions combined, head, neck and face calculated for game and missed game injuries. RESULTS: 554 head, face and neck injuries were recorded within a total of 28 902 h of rugby game exposure. Level of play and player position were related to injury risk. Younger players had the lowest rates of injury; forwards, especially the front row had the highest rate of neck injury; and inside backs had the highest rate of injuries causing the player to miss a game. Contact events, including the scrum and tackle, were the main events leading to injury. CONCLUSION: Injury prevention must focus on the tackle and scrum elements of a youth rugby game.
Use of field-based tests to identify risk factors for injury to fast bowlers in cricket
- Authors: Dennis, Rebecca , Finch, Caroline , McIntosh, Andrew , Elliott, Bruce
- Date: 2008
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: British Journal of Sports Medicine Vol. 42, no. 6 (Jun 2008), p. 477-482
- Full Text: false
- Reviewed:
- Description: Objective: To identify risk factors for injury to cricket fast bowlers using field-based tests. Design: Prospective cohort study. Setting: High performance Australian cricket. Participants: Ninety-one male adolescent and adult fast bowlers (aged 12-33 years). Assessment of risk factors: A field-based pre-participation screening, consisting of musculoskeletal, fitness and anthropometric assessments and analysis of bowling technique was undertaken. Bowlers were prospectively monitored over the 2003-4 season and bowling workload and injuries were recorded. Logistic regression was used to identify injury risk factors. Main outcome measurement: Repetitive microtrauma injury to the trunk, back or lower limb associated with fast bowling. Results: Two variables were identified as independent predictors of injury in the multivariate logistic regression analysis. Bowlers with hip internal rotation of <= 30 degrees on the leg ipsilateral to the bowling arm were at a significantly reduced risk of injury (OR 0.20, 95% CI 0.06 to 0.73) compared with bowlers with >40 degrees of rotation. Bowlers with an ankle dorsiflexion lunge of 12.1-14.0 cm on the leg contralateral to the bowling arm were at a significantly increased risk (OR 4.03, 95% CI 1.07 to 15.21) than bowlers with a lunge of >14 cm. Bowlers with a lunge of (12 cm were also at an increased risk, but not significantly so (OR 1.38, 95% CI 0.40 to 4.84). Conclusions: Biomechanical research is needed to investigate how these two intrinsic risk factors increase injury risk so that appropriate interventions can be developed.
Mild traumatic brain injury among a cohort of rugby union players: predictors of time to injury
- Authors: Hollis, Stephanie , Stevenson, Mark , McIntosh, Andrew , Li, Ling , Heritier, Stephane , Shores, E Arthur , Collins, Michael , Finch, Caroline
- Date: 2011
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: British Journal of Sports Medicine Vol. 45, no. 12 (2011), p. 997-999
- Full Text: false
- Reviewed:
- Description: This study reports the time to sustain a mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) among a cohort of community rugby union players. Demographic and player characteristics were collected and players followed up for between one and three playing seasons. 7% of the cohort sustained an mTBI within 10 h of game time, increasing twofold to 14% within 20 h. The mean time to first mTBI was 8 h with an SD of 6.2 (median 6.8 h; IQR: 2.9–11.7 h). Players reporting a recent history of concussion were 20% more likely to sustain an mTBI after 20 h of game time compared with those with no recent history of concussion. Players were likely to sustain an mTBI in shorter time if they trained for <3 h/week (HR=1.48, p=0.03) or had a body mass index <27 (HR=1.77, p=0.007). The findings highlight modifiable characteristics to reduce the likelihood of shortened time to mTBI.
Compliance with return-to-play regulations following concussion in Australian schoolboy and community rugby union players
- Authors: Hollis, Stephanie , Stevenson, Mark , McIntosh, Andrew , Shores, E Arthur , Finch, Caroline
- Date: 2012
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: British Journal of Sports Medicine Vol. 46, no. 10 (2012), p. 735-740
- Full Text: false
- Reviewed:
- Description: Background: There is a risk of concussion when playing rugby union. Appropriate management of concussion includes compliance with the return-to-play regulations of the sports body for reducing the likelihood of premature return-to-play by injured players. Purpose: To describe the proportion of rugby union players who comply with the sports body's regulations on returning to play postconcussion. Study design: Prospective cohort study. Methods: 1958 community rugby union players (aged 15–48 years) in Sydney (Australia) were recruited from schoolboy, grade and suburban competitions and followed over ≥1 playing seasons. Club doctors/physiotherapists/coaches or trained injury recorders who attended the game reported players who sustained a concussion. Concussed players were followed up over a 3-month period and the dates when they returned to play (including either a game or training session) were recorded, as well as any return-to-play advice they received. Results: 187 players sustained ≥1 concussion throughout the follow-up. The median number of days before players returned to play (competition game play or training) following concussion was 3 (range 1–84). Most players (78%) did not receive return-to-play advice postconcussion, and of those who received correct advice, all failed to comply with the 3-week stand-down regulation. Conclusions: The paucity of return-to-play advice received by community rugby union players postconcussion and the high level of non-compliance with return-to-play regulations highlight the need for better dissemination and implementation of the return-to-play regulations and improved understanding of the underlying causes of why players do not adhere to return-to-play practices.
Boxing headguard performance in punch machine tests
- Authors: McIntosh, Andrew , Patton, Declan
- Date: 2015
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: British Journal of Sports Medicine Vol. 49, no. 17 (2015), p. 1108-1112
- Full Text: false
- Reviewed:
- Description: Background: The paper presents a novel laboratory method for assessing boxing headguard impact performance. The method is applied to examine the effects of headguards on head impact dynamics and injury risk. Methods: A linear impactor was developed, and a range of impacts was delivered to an instrumented Hybrid III head and neck system both with and without an AIBA (Association Internationale de Boxe Amateur)- approved headguard. Impacts at selected speeds between 4.1 and 8.3 m/s were undertaken. The impactor mass was approximately 4 kg and an interface comprising a semirigid 'fist' with a glove was used. Results: The peak contact forces were in the range 1.9-5.9 kN. Differences in head impact responses between the Top Ten AIBA-approved headguard and bare headform in the lateral and forehead tests were large and/or significant. In the 8.3 m/s fist-glove impacts, the mean peak resultant headform accelerations for bare headform tests was approximately 130 g compared with approximately 85 g in the forehead impacts. In the 6.85 m/s bare headform impacts, mean peak resultant angular head accelerations were in the range of 5200-5600 rad/s
The impact performance of headguards for combat sports
- Authors: McIntosh, Andrew , Patton, Declan
- Date: 2015
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: British Journal of Sports Medicine Vol. 49, no. 17 (2015), p. 1113-1117
- Full Text: false
- Reviewed:
- Description: Background/aim: To assess the impact energy attenuation performance of a range of headguards for combat sports. Methods: Seven headguards worn during combat sport training or competition, including two Association Internationale de Boxe Amateur (AIBA)-approved boxing models, were tested using drop tests. An International Organization for Standardization (ISO) rigid headform was used with a 5.6 kg drop assembly mass. Tests were conducted against a flat rigid anvil both with and without a boxing glove section. The centre forehead and lateral headguard areas were tested. Peak headform acceleration was measured. Tests from a selection of drop heights and repeated tests on the same headguard were conducted. Results: Headguard performance varied by test condition. For the 0.4 m rigid anvil tests, the best model headguard was the thickest producing an average peak headform acceleration over 5 tests of 48 g compared with 456 g for the worst model. The mean peak acceleration for the 0.4, 0.5 and 0.6 frontal and lateral rigid anvil impact tests was between 32% and 40% lower for the Top Ten boxing model compared with the Adidas boxing model. The headguard performance deterioration observed with repeat impact against the flat anvil was reduced for impacts against the glove section. The overall reduction in acceleration for the combination of glove and headguard in comparison to the headguard condition was in the range of 72-93% for 0.6 and 0.8 m drop tests. Conclusions: The impact tests show the benefits of performance testing in identifying differences between headguard models.