Upper extremity injuries in male elite football players

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Abstract
Purpose: To investigate the epidemiology of upper extremity injuries in male elite football players and to describe their characteristics, incidence and lay‐off times.Methods: Between 2001 and 2011, 57 male European elite football teams (2,914 players and 6,215 player seasons) were followed prospectively. Time‐loss injuries and exposure to training and matches were recorded on individual basis.Results: In total, 11,750 injuries were recorded, 355 (3 %) of those affected the upper extremities giving an incidence of 0.23 injuries/1,000 h of football. The incidence in match play was almost 7 times higher than in training (0.83 vs. 0.12 injuries/1,000 h, rate ratio 6.7, 95 % confidence interval 5.5–8.3). As much as 32 % of traumatic match injuries occurred as a result of foul play situations. Goalkeepers had a significantly higher incidence of upper extremity injuries compared to outfield players (0.80 vs. 0.16 injuries/1,000 h, rate ratio 5.0, 95 % confidence interval 4.0–6.2). The average absence due to an upper extremity injury was 23 ± 34 days.Conclusions: Upper extremity injuries are uncommon among male elite football players. Goalkeepers, however, are prone to upper extremity injury, with a five times higher incidence compared to outfield players.Level of evidence: II.

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