The incidence, prevalence, severity, mechanism and body region of injury in elite junior Australian football players: A prospective cohort study over one season

Abstract

OBJECTIVES: To describe the incidence, prevalence, severity, mechanism and body region of injuries in elite junior Australian football (AF) players over one competitive season in order to help inform injury prevention interventions. DESIGN: Prospective cohort, data collected during the 2014 playing season. METHODS: Player and staff-reported injuries sustained by 562 players from an under-18 state league were entered into an online sports injury surveillance system. An injury was recorded if it led to a missed training session or match. Injury incidence was calculated as the number of injuries per 1000h of training and competition. Injury severity was defined by the number of days players mis..