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Exercise-Based Interventions for Injury Prevention in Tackle Collision Ball Sports: A Systematic Review

  • Systematic Review
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Abstract

Background

The injury burden in collision sports is relatively high compared to other team sports. Therefore, participants in these sports would benefit by having effective injury prevention programs. Exercise-based interventions have successfully reduced injuries in soccer, but evidence on exercise-based interventions in tackle collision sports is limited.

Objective

The objective of this review is to systematically examine the evidence of exercise-based intervention programs reducing injuries in tackle collision sports.

Data sources

PubMed, EBSCOHost, and Web of Science were searched for articles published between January 1995 and December 2015. The methodological quality was assessed using an adapted Cochrane Bone Joint and Muscle Trauma Group quality assessment tool.

Study selection

The inclusion criteria were (1) (randomized) control trials and observational studies; (2) sporting codes: American, Australian and Gaelic Football, rugby union, and rugby league; (3) participants of any age or sex; (4) exercise-based, prehabilitative intervention; and (5) primary outcome was injury rate or incidence (injury risk). The exclusion criteria were (1) unavailability of full-text; and (2) article unavailable in English.

Results

Nine studies with a total of 3517 participants were included in this review. Seven of these studies showed a significant decrease in injury risk. These studies included three sporting codes and various age groups, making it difficult to make inferences. The two highest methodological quality studies found no effect of an exercise-based intervention on injury risk.

Conclusions

There is evidence that exercise-based injury preventions can be beneficial in reducing injury risk in collision sports, but more studies of high methodological quality are required.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Division of Exercise Science and Sports Medicine, Department of Human Biology, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa

    Nicola Sewry, Evert Verhagen, Mike Lambert, Willem van Mechelen, Wayne Viljoen, Clint Readhead & James Brown

  2. Amsterdam Collaboration on Health and Safety in Sports, Department of Public and Occupational Health and EMGO+ Institute, VU University Medical Center, Amsterdam, The Netherlands

    Evert Verhagen, Mike Lambert, Willem van Mechelen & James Brown

  3. South African Rugby Union, Cape Town, South Africa

    Wayne Viljoen & Clint Readhead

Authors
  1. Nicola Sewry
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  2. Evert Verhagen
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  3. Mike Lambert
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  4. Willem van Mechelen
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  5. Wayne Viljoen
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  6. Clint Readhead
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  7. James Brown
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Nicola Sewry.

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Funding

Nicola Sewry’s PhD is funded by the Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam/National Research Foundation South Africa through the Desmond Tutu Doctoral Scholarship, administered through the South Africa Vrije Universiteit Strategic Alliance (SAVUSA). Nicola Sewry also receives funding from the University of Cape Town and the Oppenheimer Memorial Trust.

Conflicts of interest

Nicola Sewry, Evert Verhagen, Mike Lambert, Willem van Mechelen, Wayne Viljoen, Clint Readhead, and James Brown declare they have no conflicts of interest relevant to the content of this review.

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Sewry, N., Verhagen, E., Lambert, M. et al. Exercise-Based Interventions for Injury Prevention in Tackle Collision Ball Sports: A Systematic Review. Sports Med 47, 1847–1857 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40279-017-0704-4

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s40279-017-0704-4

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