Update on injury epidemiology in rowing: our experience with female NCAA Division I athletes and a systematic review of the literature

Abstract

Objectives: (1) To report the distribution of injuries per body site and time lost from participation in female NCAA Division I rowers and (2) to present an updated summary of the existing evidence regarding the analysis of injuries per body site in rowers.

Methods: Case series: The distribution of injuries per body site in female NCAA Division I rowers and the time lost from participation were retrieved from an institutional registry. Injuries per body site were reported as number of athletes with site-specific injury per total number of injured athletes. Systematic review: Based on the PRISMA guidelines for systematic reviews, three electronic databases were searched for studies reporting the epidemiology of injuries per body site in rowers and analyzed.

Results: Case series: One-hundred and thirty-seven injuries were recorded in 92 female rowers over 5 years. The risk of injury (number of injured athletes over total number of athletes on roaster) was 52% (92/176). Among the 92 injured athletes, 38% sustained injury to the lower back, while 23% and 16% of these athletes sustained injury to the ribs and hip-groin area, respectively. Systematic review: Ten studies were included. The level of evidence was IV and the mean MINORS score was 13.2(9-15) (fair quality). Most studies reported injuries to the lower spine (8/10,80%) whereas injuries to the ribs or other anatomic sites were reported in ≤4 (40%) studies. Significant heterogeneity of the injury reporting methodologies (injury definition; measures of injury occurrence; description of the injury site) was detected and precluded meta-analysis.

Conclusions: Most injuries recorded in a single team of female NCAA Division I athletes occurred in the lower back followed by injuries to the ribs and the hip. The existing injury epidemiology literature in mostly focuses on injuries to the lower back, while injuries to other anatomic sites were less frequently analyzed. No conclusions can be made regarding the most common injuries in rowers based on the current evidence due to substantial heterogeneity of injury reported methodologies which warrants further investigation.

Keywords: Rowing; epidemiology; hip; injury risk; lower back; ncaa; rib; systematic review.