Injuries in women's soccer: a 1-year all players prospective field study of the women's Bundesliga (German premier league).

OBJECTIVE

To obtain precise information on injury patterns in the women's premier soccer league in Germany.

DESIGN

One-year, prospective, epidemiologic cohort study.

SETTING

Institutional level German Football Association.

PARTICIPANTS

All 254 players from all 12 women's premier league teams were included.

INTERVENTIONS: Base information by standardized personal interviews. Evaluation of all injury-associated medical data transmitted by standardized documentation forms.

ASSESSMENT OF RISK FACTORS: Injuries incidence rates (average, 95% confidence intervals) based on the exposure in matches and at practice.

MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: All time loss diagnoses, number and context of injuries related to their anatomical localization, severity, and rehabilitation period were recorded.

RESULTS

All 254 players finished the study [average age, 22.8 years (16-35 years)]. Two hundred forty-six injuries amounted to an injury rate of 3.3 per 1000 hours (games, 18.5 per 1000 hours; practice, 1.4 per 1000 hours). Injury distribution: knee, 31.0%; ankle, 22.1%; thigh, 12.9%; and head, 7.1%. The seasonal peak was at the beginning of the competitive season. Injury rates doubled after the 60th minute. Twenty-nine percent of the injuries were severe, and 37% were moderate.

CONCLUSIONS

Female players suffer a high amount of head injuries and severe knee and ankle injuries. The most common single injury is a sprained ankle. Torn ligaments in the ankle and knee are the most common injuries that require a long recovery period. Most of the severe injuries (>30 days) are due to noncontact intrinsic mechanisms. Almost one-quarter of all injuries consist of exertion syndromes not yet correlated with certain seasonal periods.