Comparison Of High School Girls’ And College Women’s Softball Injury Incidence, 2004/05-2013/14: 1495 Board #170 June 1 8

Few studies have reported sport injury incidence across age continuums. High School Reporting Information Online (HS RIO) and the National Collegiate Athletic Association Injury Surveillance Program (NCAA-ISP) and have each tracked sports injuries for over 10 years. PURPOSE: Compare injury incidence in high school (HS) girls’ and college women’s softball. METHODS: Athletic trainers (ATs) from an annual average of 100 high schools and 50 NCAA member institutions participated in online injury surveillance from 2005/06 (HS RIO) or 2004/05 (NCAA-ISP) through 2013/14, reporting injury and athlete-exposure (AE) data. Time loss injuries were injuries occurring during a school-sanctioned practice or competition, requiring medical attention, and resulting in participation restriction at least 24 hours. Injury frequencies and rates were calculated. Rate ratios (RR) compared rates between HS and college by event type (competition vs. practice). RRs with 95% confidence intervals (CI) not including 1.00 were considered significant. RESULTS: ATs reported 1,357 softball injuries in HS and 1,848 in college. Injury rates were higher in college women than HS girls (3.19 vs. 1.16/1000 AE; RR=2.76; 95% CI: 2.57-2.96). Although a nearly even split, the majority injuries occurred during competitions in HS (51.5%) and practices in college (50.7%). Injury rates were higher in college than HS in both competitions (3.82 vs. 1.73/1000 AE; RR=2.21; 95% CI: 2.00-2.44) and practices (2.75 vs. 0.86/1000 AE; RR=3.21; 95% CI: 2.91-3.55). The competition injury rate was higher than the practice injury rate in HS (RR=2.02; 95%CI: 1.82-2.25) and college (RR=1.39; 95%CI: 1.27-1.52). Injury rates for HS practices and competitions remained stable over time. Injury rates for college practices decreased and injury rates for college competitions increased beginning in the 2010/11 academic year. CONCLUSIONS: Injury rates vary by age group and event type with higher rates seen in college athletes and during competitions. Differences may be due to skill level, intensity of play, or access to athletic health care. Further research is needed to determine the cause of these differences and identify injury prevention initiatives.