@article{ref1,
title="Risk of injury associated with bodychecking experience among youth hockey players",
journal="CMAJ : Canadian Medical Association journal",
year="2011",
author="Emery, Carolyn A. and Kang, Jian and Shrier, Ian and Goulet, Claude and Hagel, Brent Edward and Benson, Brian and Nettel-Aguirre, Alberto and McAllister, Jenelle and Meeuwisse, Willem",
volume="183",
number="11",
pages="1249-1256",
abstract="Background: In a previous prospective study, the risk of concussion and all injury was more than threefold higher among Pee Wee ice hockey players (ages 11-12 years) in a league that allows body-checking than among those in a league that does not. We examined whether two years of body-checking experience in Pee Wee influenced the risk of concussion and other injury among players in a Bantam league (ages 13-14) compared with Bantam players introduced to body-checking for the first time at age 13. Methods: We conducted a prospective cohort study involving hockey players aged 13-14 years in the top 30% of divisions of play in their leagues. Sixty-eight teams from the province of Alberta (n = 995), whose players had two years of body-checking experience in Pee Wee, and 62 teams from the province of Quebec (n = 976), whose players had no body-checking experience in Pee Wee, participated. We estimated incidence rate ratios (IRRs) for injury and for concussion. Results: There were 272 injuries (51 concussions) among the Bantam hockey players who had body-checking experience in Pee Wee and 244 injuries (49 concussions) among those without such experience. The adjusted IRRs for game-related injuries and concussion overall be tween players with body-checking experience in Pee Wee and those without it were as follows: injury overall 0.85 (95% confidence interval [CI] 0.63 to 1.16); concussion overall 0.84 (95% CI 0.48 to 1.48); and injury resulting in more than seven days of time loss (i.e., time between injury and return to play) 0.67 (95% CI 0.46 to 0.99). The unadjusted IRR for concussion resulting in more than 10 days of time loss was 0.60 (95% CI 0.26 to 1.41). Interpretation The risk of injury resulting in more than seven days of time loss from play was reduced by 33% among Bantam hockey players in a league where body-checking was allowed two years earlier in Pee Wee compared with Bantam players introduced to body-checking for the first time at age 13. In light of the increased risk of concussion and other injury among Pee Wee players in a league where body-checking is permitted, policy regarding the age at which hockey players are introduced to body-checking requires further consideration.<p /> <p>Language: en</p>",
language="en",
issn="0820-3946",
doi="10.1503/cmaj.101540",
url="http://dx.doi.org/10.1503/cmaj.101540"
}