TY - JOUR
PY - 2019//
TI - Epidemiology of injuries in professional football: a systematic review and meta-analysis
JO - British journal of sports medicine
A1 - López-Valenciano, Alejandro
A1 - Ruiz-Pérez, Iñaki
A1 - Garcia-Gómez, Alberto
A1 - Vera-Garcia, Francisco J.
A1 - De Ste Croix, Mark
A1 - Myer, Gregory D.
A1 - Ayala, Francisco
SP - ePub
EP - ePub
VL - ePub
IS - ePub
N2 - OBJECTIVE: We performed a systematic review and meta-analysis of epidemiological data of injuries in professional male football [soccer].
METHOD: Forty-four studies have reported the incidence of injuries in football. Two reviewers independently extracted data and assessed trial quality using the Strengthening the Reporting of Observational Studies in Epidemiology statement and Newcastle Ottawa Scale. Studies were combined in a pooled analysis using a Poisson random effects regression model.
RESULTS: The overall incidence of injuries in professional male football players was 8.1 injuries/1000 hours of exposure. Match injury incidence (36 injuries/1000 hours of exposure) was almost 10 times higher than training injury incidence rate (3.7 injuries/1000 hours of exposure). Lower extremity injuries had the highest incidence rates (6.8 injuries/1000 hours of exposure). The most common types of injuries were muscle/tendon (4.6 injuries/1000 hours of exposure), which were frequently associated with traumatic incidents. Minor injuries (1-3 days of time loss) were the most common. The incidence rate of injuries in the top 5 European professional leagues was not different to that of the professional leagues in other countries (6.8 vs 7.6 injuries/1000 hours of exposure, respectively).
CONCLUSIONS: Professional male football players have a substantial risk of sustaining injuries, especially during matches.
© Author(s) (or their employer(s)) 2019. No commercial re-use. See rights and permissions. Published by BMJ. Language: en
LA - en
SN - 0306-3674
UR - http://dx.doi.org/10.1136/bjsports-2018-099577
ID - ref1
ER -