Acute Musculoskeletal Sports Injuries in School Age Children in Britain

Abstract

Objectives: To determine the relative number of acute musculoskeletal injuries sustained by children due to different sports in a region of the UK, and assess the burden upon the NHS, through a cross sectional study.

Methods: Collection of data for every child aged 6-18 seen at the Peterborough City Hospital fracture clinic, whose sports injury was from 1^st September 2018 - 31^st August 2019 (1 school year; n=689). Data was gathered throughout the year by three children's orthopaedic surgeons, who consulted the clinic records, notes and x-rays of all children who had attended clinic.

Results: Boys were 2.7 times more likely to sustain injury than girls. Children aged 6-9 had few injuries (mean 24 injuries each year group), 10-15 had a large number of injuries (mean 84), and 16-18 again had few injuries (mean 35). Football and rugby were responsible for the majority of injuries (61% between them), as well as the majority of physiotherapy appointments (72%). Sports with the highest likelihood that an injury will be sufficiently serious to require surgery were equestrian (42% of injuries required surgery), gymnastics (27%), ice skating (25%) and rugby (22%). Popular sports in which injuries were relatively rare include swimming, athletics, cricket, hockey, tennis and badminton.

Conclusion: The sports that caused the most injuries were football and rugby. Considering relative participation in different sports, it is clear that rugby has a disproportionate number of musculoskeletal injuries in total, of severe injuries requiring surgery, and requiring rehab from physiotherapy.

Keywords: Basketball; Equestrian; Football; Fracture; Gymnastics; Injury risk; Ligament; Netball; Paediatric; Rugby.