Summary

Elbow injuries in NCAA football athletes are relatively common, but fortunately a majority only result in less than 24 hours of time loss.

Abstract

Introduction

There is a paucity of data on NCAA football injuries overall, but especially elbow injuries. The purpose of our study was to define the epidemiology of elbow injuries in NCAA football players during the 2009/2010-2014/2015 seasons using data from the NCAA Injury Surveillance Program (NCAA-ISP).

Methods

Using the NCAA-ISP database, a convenience sample of NCAA varsity football athletes was reviewed to determine types, rates, and trends in elbow injuries. Injury rates were calculated by dividing the number of injuries by the total number of athlete-exposures (AEs). Relative risks were calculated to compare injury rates per event type and time in season.

Results

We identified 4,874 total elbow injuries over the 5-year period with an overall injury rate of 16.82 injuries per 1,000 AEs. Elbow injuries were 5.31 times more likely to occur in competition compared to practice. Athletes were 1.07 and 1.34 times more likely to sustain an elbow injury during the pre-season than compared to regular season or post-season, respectively. Acute elbow instability with dislocation/subluxation was the most common injury type (34.24%) and most injuries required less than 24 hours of time loss from play (67.33%).

Conclusion

Elbow injuries in NCAA football athletes are relatively common. Fortunately, a majority of injuries only resulted in less than 24 hours of time loss. Given the high frequency of elbow injuries in NCAA football players, especially in pre-season, particular attention should be given to preventing elbow injuries through the implementation of prevention programs. These may decrease risk of both initial injury and recurrence.