CONTEXT: The advent of Web-based sports injury surveillance via programs such as the High School Reporting Information Online system and the National Collegiate Athletic Association Injury Surveillance Program has aided the acquisition of data for girls' and women's field hockey injuries.
OBJECTIVE: To describe the epidemiology of injuries sustained in high school girls' field hockey in the 2008-2009 through 2013-2014 academic years and college women's field hockey in the 2004-2005 through 2013-2014 academic years using Web-based sports injury surveillance.
DESIGN: Descriptive epidemiology study. SETTING: Online injury surveillance from field hockey teams in high school girls (annual average = 61) and collegiate women (annual average = 14). PATIENTS OR OTHER PARTICIPANTS: Girls' or women's field hockey players who participated in practices and competitions during the 2008-2009 through 2013-2014 high school academic years and the 2004-2005 through 2013-2014 collegiate academic years. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE(S): Athletic trainers collected time-loss (≥24 hours) injury and exposure data. Injury rates per 1000 athlete-exposures (AEs), injury rate ratios (IRRs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs), and injury proportions by body site and diagnosis were calculated.
RESULTS: The High School Reporting Information Online system documented 983 time-loss injuries during 569 551 AEs; the National Collegiate Athletic Association Injury Surveillance Program documented 996 time-loss injuries during 185 984 AEs. The injury rate from 2008-2009 through 2013-2014 was higher in college than in high school (3.25 versus 1.73/1000 AEs; IRR = 1.89; 95% CI = 1.63, 2.18). Most injuries occurred during practices in high school (52.0%) and college (60.7%). Injury rates were higher in competitions than in practices in high school (IRR = 2.00; 95% CI = 1.76, 2.26) and college (IRR = 1.96; 95% CI = 1.73, 2.23). At both levels, injuries most commonly occurred to the lower extremity and head/face and resulted in muscle/tendon strains and contusions. However, injury patterns varied between practices and competitions.
CONCLUSIONS: Injury rates and patterns varied across age groups and between practices and competitions, highlighting the need for development of targeted injury-prevention strategies at both levels of play.