Citation

Oddy C, Johnson MI, Jones G. BMJ Open Sport Exerc. Med. 2016; 2(1): e000177.

Affiliation

Faculty of Health & Social Sciences, Leeds Beckett University, Leeds, UK.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2016, British Association of Sport and Exercise Medicine, Publisher BMJ Publishing Group)

DOI

10.1136/bmjsem-2016-000177

PMID

28890803

PMCID

PMC5566262

Abstract

BACKGROUND: Rugby league is a collision sport where musculoskeletal injuries are common. There has been little research on generalised joint hypermobility (GJH) as a risk factor for injury in rugby league. The aim of this study was to investigate the role of GJH on the incidence of injuries in first and second team rugby league players from one British university.

METHODS: We conducted a prospective cohort study of 45 student players from one British university first and second team rugby league squads (mean age 20.93±1.57 years). At the beginning of the season, GJH was determined using a 9-point Beighton scale, and injury and exposure data were collected on a weekly basis throughout the 2013-2014 season.

RESULTS: The prevalence of GJH was 20%. There was no statistically significant difference in the frequency of injuries between GJH and non-GJH participants (p=0.938, Mann-Whitney U test).Participants categorised as having GJH did not experience a higher fequency of injury (p=0.722, Fisher's exact test) and there was no tendency to demonstrate a higher risk of injury for participants categorised as GJH (OR=0.64, 95% CI 0.15 to 2.78; relative risk (RR)=1.188, 95% CI 0.537 to 2.625). The most common site of injury was the ankle, but this was not statistically significant (OR=0.152, 95% CI 0.008 to 2.876; RR=0.195, CI 0.012 to 3.066).

CONCLUSION: British university rugby league players with GJH did not demonstrate a greater risk of injury than those without GJH.

Language: en

Keywords

Rugby; ankle; epidemiology; general sports trauma