Injury data collection and utilisation practices in university sports teams: A cross-sectional study.

OBJECTIVES: This study aimed to examine injury surveillance practices in a variety of university sports teams and barriers and facilitators for injury data collection and utilisation. DESIGN: Cross-sectional study. SETTING: University sports teams in Japan. PARTICIPANTS: Medical, coaching, and other staff (non-medical/-coaching staff) of the university sports teams in Japan. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: The survey included 31 questions that examined the barriers and facilitators for injury data collection, and the type of data on injury and exposure collected. RESULTS: Injury data were collected during matches for 69 teams (48.3%) and training for 61 teams (42.7%). Injuries were primarily captured by athletic trainers in teams with medical staff, coaching staff and athletes in teams without medical staff. Common barriers in collecting and utilising injury data included limited funding for trained personnel and lack of time for medical staff to record data. Facilitating factors included clarification of the methods employed in recording and utilising injury data for teams with medical staff and the deployment of trained personnel to record injuries for teams without medical staff. CONCLUSIONS: Approximately half of the Japanese university teams collected injury data. Considering barriers and facilitators is crucial to facilitate the collection and utilisation of injury data.

Influence of Surveillance Methods in the Detection of Sports Injuries and Illnesses.

Background: Epidemiological data on sports injuries and illnesses depend on the surveillance methodology and the definition of the health problems. The effect of different surveillance methods on the data collection has been investigated for overuse injuries, but not for other health problems such as traumatic injuries and illnesses. Purpose: The purpose of this study was to investigate the new surveillance method developed by the Oslo Sports Trauma Research Center (OSTRC), which is based on any complaint definition (new method), to identify health problems compared with the traditional surveillance method, which is based on time loss definition. Study design: Descriptive epidemiology study. Methods: A total of 62 Japanese athletes were prospectively followed-up for 18 weeks to assess differences in health problems identified by both new and traditional methods. Every week, the athletes completed the Japanese version of the OSTRC questionnaire (OSTRC-H2.​JP), whereas the teams' athletic trainers registered health problems with a time loss definition. The numbers of health problems identified via each surveillance method were calculated and compared with each other to assess any differences between their results. Results: The average weekly response rate to the OSTRC-H2.​JP was 82.1% (95% CI, 79.8-84.3). This new method recorded 3.1 times more health problems (3.1 times more injuries and 2.8 times more illnesses) than the traditional method. The difference between both surveillance methods' counts was greater for overuse injuries (5.3 times) than for traumatic injuries (2.5 times). Conclusions: This study found that the new method captured more than three times as many health problems as the traditional method. In particular, the difference between both methods' counts was greater for overuse injuries than for traumatic injuries. Level of evidence: 2b.

An update of the Japanese Oslo Sports Trauma Research Center questionnaires on overuse injuries and health problems.

Monitoring the health of athletes is important for their protection, and questionnaires such as those produced by the Oslo Sports Trauma Research Center (OSTRC) are a valuable tool in this process. In 2020, several changes were made to the OSTRC questionnaires (OSTRC-O, OSTRC-H), including changes to the wording, structure, and logic of the original questionnaires. In the present study, the Japanese versions of the OSTRC questionnaires (OSTRC-O.JP, OSTRC-H.JP) were revised to meet the requirements of the updated versions and to analyse new and previously collected data to illustrate the impact of the changes on Japanese athletes. Proposed changes were categorized as minor or more substantial; minor changes were effected to the questionnaire instructions and to the wording of all four questions, and more substantial changes were made to the wording of question 2. The updated questionnaires also included changes to questionnaire logic and answer categories. To assess the consequences of the changes to the wording of question 2, 101 athletes were asked to complete the OSTRC-H.JP, which included both the original and updated versions of question 2, over 10 consecutive weeks. We calculated the number of health problems identified when new gatekeeper logic was and was not applied, using 1585 OSTRC-H.JP responses to assess the consequences of the changes to the questionnaire logic. The kappa coefficient, which measures the level of agreement between the responses to question 2 of the original and updated versions, was high. By applying gatekeeper logic, there was a remarkable reduction in the number of injuries and illnesses among all health problems but less reduction in substantial health problems and time loss health problems. These changes will make it easier for Japanese athletes to complete the questionnaires and improve the quality of collected data.

Japanese translation and validation of web-based questionnaires on overuse injuries and health problems.

This study aimed to translate and culturally adapt the Oslo Sports Trauma Research Center Overuse Injury Questionnaire (OSTRC-O) and the Oslo Sports Trauma Research Center Questionnaire on Health Problems (OSTRC-H) into the Japanese context. The validity and reliability of these translated questionnaires examining overuse injuries and health problems among Japanese university athletes were also examined. The translation was performed following an internationally recognized methodology. A total of 145 athletes were tracked over 10 consecutive weeks and four questions were added in the 10th week to examine the questionnaires' content validity. Test-retest analysis for reliability was performed 24-72 hours after the 10th week of registration. Internal consistency was determined by calculating Cronbach's a during the cohort study. No major disagreements were found in the translation process. The translated questionnaires had high acceptance and compliance, with an average response rate of over 80% throughout the 10-week cohort study. Most participants reported that the questionnaires were not difficult to complete, there were no items they wanted to change or add, and that the web-based technique worked effectively. Good test-retest reliability and high internal consistency was observed in the translated questionnaires. The translated questionnaires were found to be valid, reliable, and acceptable for medically monitoring Japanese athletes.