Abstract
Objectives
Youth rugby union is a popular sport with a high injury incidence density (IID) and
burden. This high risk has called for further research into the factors affecting
the injuries in youth rugby. The aim of the study was to analyse time-loss IID and
burden in multiple schoolboy rugby teams over a season and the potential factors associated
with injury.
Design
Prospective cohort
Methods
All time-loss injuries were recorded from three schools for the whole season. Overall
IID and injury burden were calculated, as well as for injury event, type, location
and the match quarter in which they occurred and Poisson regression analyses were
performed to determine differences.
Results
IID was 28.8 (18.9–38.6) injuries per 1000 player hours over the season, with an injury
burden of 379.2 (343.6–414.9) days lost per 1000 player hours. The ball-carrier had
a significantly higher IID (11.3 (5.2–17.5) per 1000 player hours) compared to other
events, and the joint (non-bone)/ligament injuries were the most common (IID of 12.2
(5.8–18.6) per 1000 player hours) and severe type of injury (burden of 172.6 (148.5–196.6)
days lost per 1000 player hours).
Conclusions
The IID was similar to previous youth rugby studies, however the injury burden was
much lower. The South African youth cohort showed similar factors associated with
injury for inciting event (the tackle) and injury type (joint (non-bone)/ligament)
and location (lower limb) as seen in other studies in both youth and senior players.
Keywords
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Article info
Publication history
Published online: June 19, 2018
Accepted:
June 11,
2018
Received in revised form:
May 22,
2018
Received:
November 29,
2017
Identification
Copyright
© 2018 Sports Medicine Australia. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
