The Epidemiology of Injuries in Football at the London 2012 Paralympic Games

Background The epidemiology of injury in Paralympic football has received little attention. A study of all sports at the London 2012 Paralympic Games identified football 5-a-side as the sport with the highest injury rate, meriting further detailed analysis, which may facilitate the development of strategies to prevent injuries. Objective To examine the injury rates and risk factors associated with injury in Paralympic football. Design Secondary analysis of a prospective cohort study of injuries to football 5-a-side and football 7-a-side athletes. Setting London 2012 Paralympic Games. Participants Participants included 70 football 5-a-side athletes and 96 football 7-a-side athletes. Athletes from all but one country chose to participate in this study. Methods The Paralympic Injury and Illness Surveillance System was used to track injuries during the Games, with data entered by medical staff. Main Outcome Measurements Injury incidence rate (IR) and injury incidence proportion (IP). Results The overall IR for football 5-a-side was 22.4 injuries/1000 athlete-days (95% confidence interval [CI], 14.1-33.8) with an IP of 31.4 injuries per 100 athletes (95% CI, 20.9-43.6). In 5-a-side competition, 62.5% of injuries were associated with foul play. The overall IR for football 7-a-side was 10.4 injuries/1000 athlete-days (95% CI, 5.4-15.5), with an IP of 14.6 injuries per 100 athletes (95% CI, 7.5-21.6). The most commonly injured body region in both sports was the lower extremity. Conclusions To our knowledge, this study is the first to examine IR and risk factors associated with injury in Paralympic football. Future studies are needed to determine mechanisms of injury and independent risk factors for injury, thus informing prevention strategies.