TY - JOUR
T1 - What Are the Main Risk Factors for Lower Extremity Running-Related Injuries? A Retrospective Survey Based on 3669 Respondents
AU - Sanfilippo, Damien
AU - Beaudart, Charlotte
AU - Gaillard, Allan
AU - Bornheim, Stephen
AU - Bruyere, Olivier
AU - Kaux, Jean François
N1 - Funding Information:
The authors thank all participants who kindly responded to the survey.
Publisher Copyright:
© The Author(s) 2021.
PY - 2021
Y1 - 2021
N2 - Background: Despite the many studies on running-related injuries (RRIs), risk factors for injury remain unclear in the literature. Purpose: To investigate the risk factors of RRIs. Study Design: Case-control study; Level of evidence, 3. Methods: An online survey was conducted among 3669 injured and noninjured runners. Injury was defined as pain of various kinds, without attention to its consequences on running practice. The survey included 41 questions on 5 main categories—personal characteristics, daily lifestyle, training and running characteristics, practice of other sporting activities, and prevention habits—as well as information about the occurrence of RRI over the previous 12 months. Continuous and qualitative variables were analyzed by Student t test and chi-square test, respectively. Sixteen variables were selected for multivariate binary logistic analysis. Results: Among the 3669 runners, 1852 (50.5%) reported at least 1 injury over the previous 12 months. Overuse injuries were largely represented (60.6%). The variables associated with RRIs that remained significant in the fully adjusted model were previous injury (odds ratio [OR], 1.62; 95% CI, 1.42-1.86), higher weight (OR, 1.006; 95% CI, 1.00-1.012), competitive running (OR, 1.53; 95% CI, 1.19-1.98), running >2 h/wk (OR, 1.28; 95% CI, 1.01-1.62), running >20 km/wk (OR, 1.25; 95% CI, 1.001-1.55), and stretching before running (OR, 1.46; 95% CI, 1.25-1.71). Conclusion: Previous injury remains the most relevant risk factor for RRIs according to the current study and previous data. Many training characteristics seem to be involved but still have to be confirmed in view of conflicting data in the literature. Further research would help clinicians better understand RRIs and how to prevent them.
AB - Background: Despite the many studies on running-related injuries (RRIs), risk factors for injury remain unclear in the literature. Purpose: To investigate the risk factors of RRIs. Study Design: Case-control study; Level of evidence, 3. Methods: An online survey was conducted among 3669 injured and noninjured runners. Injury was defined as pain of various kinds, without attention to its consequences on running practice. The survey included 41 questions on 5 main categories—personal characteristics, daily lifestyle, training and running characteristics, practice of other sporting activities, and prevention habits—as well as information about the occurrence of RRI over the previous 12 months. Continuous and qualitative variables were analyzed by Student t test and chi-square test, respectively. Sixteen variables were selected for multivariate binary logistic analysis. Results: Among the 3669 runners, 1852 (50.5%) reported at least 1 injury over the previous 12 months. Overuse injuries were largely represented (60.6%). The variables associated with RRIs that remained significant in the fully adjusted model were previous injury (odds ratio [OR], 1.62; 95% CI, 1.42-1.86), higher weight (OR, 1.006; 95% CI, 1.00-1.012), competitive running (OR, 1.53; 95% CI, 1.19-1.98), running >2 h/wk (OR, 1.28; 95% CI, 1.01-1.62), running >20 km/wk (OR, 1.25; 95% CI, 1.001-1.55), and stretching before running (OR, 1.46; 95% CI, 1.25-1.71). Conclusion: Previous injury remains the most relevant risk factor for RRIs according to the current study and previous data. Many training characteristics seem to be involved but still have to be confirmed in view of conflicting data in the literature. Further research would help clinicians better understand RRIs and how to prevent them.
KW - prevalent injuries
KW - risk factors
KW - running-related injuries
KW - survey
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85119452502&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1177/23259671211043444
DO - 10.1177/23259671211043444
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85119452502
SN - 2325-9671
VL - 9
JO - Orthopaedic Journal of Sports Medicine
JF - Orthopaedic Journal of Sports Medicine
IS - 11
ER -