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Objective: To describe the epidemiology, mechanisms, treatment, and disability for facial injuries in National Basketball Association (NBA) athletes., Methods: This was a retrospective descriptive epidemiological chart review using NBA Electronic Medical Record (EMR) system. Responses to injuries reported in games, practices, and other activities were used for all data analysis, except for game incidence rates. Incidence rates were calculated by the game-related facial injury incidence per total athlete exposure (player-games)., Results: There were 440 facial injuries among 263 athletes during the 5 NBA seasons with an overall single-season risk of 12.6% and a game incidence of 2.4 per 1000 athlete-exposures (95% CI: 2.18-2.68). The majority of injuries were lacerations ( n  = 159, 36.1%), contusions ( n  = 99, 22.5%), or fractures ( n  = 67, 15.2%), with ocular ( n  = 163, 37.0%) being the most commonly injured location. Sixty (13.6%) injuries resulted in at least one NBA game missed (224 cumulative player-games) with ocular injuries resulting in the most cumulative games missed ( n  = 167, 74.6%). Nasal fractures ( n  = 39, 58.2%) were the most common fracture location followed by ocular fractures ( n  = 12, 17.9%) but were less likely to lead to games missed (median = 1, IRQ: 1-3) than ocular (median = 7, IQR: 2-10) fractures., Conclusions: An average of one in eight NBA players sustained a facial injury each season with ocular injuries being the most common location. While most facial injuries are minor, serious injuries, especially ocular fractures, can result in games missed.

Background: The combined positioning of the trunk and knee in the coronal and sagittal planes during non-contact anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury has not been previously reported., Hypothesis: During ACL injury female athletes demonstrate greater lateral trunk and knee abduction angles than ACL-injured male athletes and uninjured female athletes., Design: Cross-section control-cohort design., Methods: Analyses of still captures from 23 coronal (10 female and 7 male ACL-injured players and 6 female controls) or 28 sagittal plane videos performing similar landing and cutting tasks. Significance was set at p < or = 0.05., Results: Lateral trunk and knee abduction angles were higher in female compared to male athletes during ACL injury (p < or = 0.05) and trended toward being greater than female controls (p = 0.16, 0.13, respectively). Female ACL-injured athletes showed less forward trunk lean than female controls (mean (SD) initial contact (IC): 1.6 (9.3) degrees vs 14.0 (7.3) degrees, p < or = 0.01)., Conclusion: Female athletes landed with greater lateral trunk motion and knee abduction during ACL injury than did male athletes or control females during similar landing and cutting tasks., Clinical Relevance: Lateral trunk and knee abduction motion are important components of the ACL injury mechanism in female athletes as observed from video evidence of ACL injury.

Background: The mechanisms of anterior cruciate ligament injury in basketball are not well defined., Purpose: To describe the mechanisms of anterior cruciate ligament injury in basketball based on videos of injury situations., Study Design: Case series; Level of evidence, 4., Methods: Six international experts performed visual inspection analyses of 39 videos (17 male and 22 female players) of anterior cruciate ligament injury situations from high school, college, and professional basketball games. Two predefined time points were analyzed: initial ground contact and 50 milliseconds later. The analysts were asked to assess the playing situation, player behavior, and joint kinematics., Results: There was contact at the assumed time of injury in 11 of the 39 cases (5 male and 6 female players). Four of these cases were direct blows to the knee, all in men. Eleven of the 22 female cases were collisions, or the player was pushed by an opponent before the time of injury. The estimated time of injury, based on the group median, ranged from 17 to 50 milliseconds after initial ground contact. The mean knee flexion angle was higher in female than in male players, both at initial contact (15 degrees vs 9 degrees , P = .034) and at 50 milliseconds later (27 degrees vs 19 degrees , P = .042). Valgus knee collapse occurred more frequently in female players than in male players (relative risk, 5.3; P = .002)., Conclusion: Female players landed with significantly more knee and hip flexion and had a 5.3 times higher relative risk of sustaining a valgus collapse than did male players. Movement patterns were frequently perturbed by opponents., Clinical Relevance: Preventive programs to enhance knee control should focus on avoiding valgus motion and include distractions resembling those seen in match situations.

Background: Female college basketball and soccer athletes have higher rates of anterior cruciate ligament injury than do their male counterparts. Rates of anterior cruciate ligament injuries for women and men in collegiate lacrosse have not been examined. Understanding anterior cruciate ligament injury patterns in lacrosse, a full-contact sport for men and noncontact sport for women, could further injury prevention efforts., Hypotheses: Female anterior cruciate ligament injury rates will decrease over time owing to longer participation in sports. Lacrosse anterior cruciate ligament injury rates will be lower than rates in basketball and soccer possibly owing to beneficial biomechanics of carrying a lacrosse stick., Study Design: Cohort study (Prevalence); Level of evidence, 2., Methods: Data from the National Collegiate Athletic Association Injury Surveillance System were analyzed to compare men's and women's anterior cruciate ligament injuries in basketball, lacrosse, and soccer over 15 years., Results: Anterior cruciate ligament injury rates in women's basketball and soccer were 0.28 and 0.32 injuries per 1000 athlete exposures, respectively, and did not decline over the study period. In men's basketball, injury rate fluctuated between 0.03 and 0.13 athlete exposures. Rates of anterior cruciate ligament injury did not significantly change in men's soccer over the study period. The rate of anterior cruciate ligament injury in men's lacrosse (0.17 athlete exposures, P < .05) was significantly higher than in men's basketball (0.08 athlete exposures) and soccer (0.12 athlete exposures). Injury rate in women's lacrosse (0.18 athlete exposures, P < .05) was significantly lower than in women's basketball and soccer., Conclusion: There was no discernable change in rate of anterior cruciate ligament injury in men or women during the study period. Men's lacrosse is a high-risk sport for anterior cruciate ligament injury. Unlike basketball and soccer, the rates of anterior cruciate ligament injury are essentially the same in men's and women's lacrosse. The level of allowed contact in pivoting sports may be a factor in determining sport-specific anterior cruciate ligament risk.