Evidence-based Sports Medicine

2: Methodology in researchLISA HODGSON PHILLIPSIntroductionThis chapter aims to give a “medical” viewpoint on sports injurydata collection and analysis; to emphasise the importance ofepidemiological sports data collection with regards to incidence ratesand exposure risk hours and highlight the need for uniformdefinitions within and across sport. Designed not as a statistical orepidemiological chapter but as a resource to be used by those involvedin sports injury research so that they may confidently and criticallyanalyse and compare existing research and to enable them to collectaccurate sports injury data in their own field.Currently in sports epidemiology there is a reliance on case reportsof injuries which can give an inaccurate picture of injury patterns insport, yet this is still common practice. It is always problematic tocompare injury statistics across sports due to the added factors of thenumber of people involved, the time played and the variable injurydefinition. Increasingly sports injury data is reported as incidencerates, for example injuries per 1 000 hours played, i.e. using numeratorand denominator data as this methodology takes account of theexposure time at risk. 1Sports injuries can be unique because they occur when athletes areexposed to their given sport and they occur under specific conditions,at a known time and place. Some of these conditions can becontrolled, for example what equipment the athlete uses or wears,other conditions cannot, for example the weather in an outdoor game.When examining sports injury data there are certain questionscommon to all sports that require answers. The knowledge gainedfrom asking and ultimately answering these questions may help topredict and thus prevent injuries occurring.Box 2.1 Typical questions asked when examiningsports injury data• Is there a greater risk in one certain sport?• Is there a common site and type of injury in a given sport?• Who is at most risk in a team sport?• What is the participation time missed due to that specific injury?12