High Prevalence of Low Back Pain in College Rifle Athletes.
Bailey Urbach, Cody Mansfield, Mica Harr and 3 others
PMID 39758688WHAT IT FOUND
Most collegiate rifle athletes (101 of 113) reported low back pain in conjunction with rifle training or competition.
Pain affected sleep, travel, and training, and female respondents reported it more often than male respondents.
Key findings
01101 of 113 respondents reported at least one episode of low back pain in conjunction with rifle training or competition.
02Female respondents reported low back pain more often than male respondents: 69 of 70 women versus 32 of 43 men.
03Among athletes with low back pain, 33 of 98 missed at least one training or competition day in the previous season, and the mean estimated season time with pain was 45%.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for PTs
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What it does not show
The survey was cross-sectional, so it cannot show that rifle shooting caused low back pain or that a stance caused it. Pain history and season impact were self-reported and recalled, so athletes without painful episodes may have under-reported them. Athletes with pain may have been more likely to respond, making prevalence look higher. Only 23 of 46 contacted programs received the survey link, and the survey ran during early pandemic restrictions, so results may not represent all collegiate rifle athletes. The no-pain group was small, with only 12 athletes, and the sample had 70 women and 43 men, so the sex difference should be interpreted cautiously. The rifle position questions were not validated, so position findings are descriptive rather than measured risk factors. Analyses excluded item non-responders, so some percentages are based on fewer than 114 athletes. The paper's suggestions about stance changes and core strength are not tested by this study.
Declared interests
The authors report no conflicts of interest.
The easy way to misread this
Do not read the 89% prevalence or the sex difference as proof that rifle shooting caused low back pain or that female athletes are inherently at higher risk. The study was a self-report survey, it cannot establish cause, and the sex analysis had only 12 athletes without pain and unequal sex numbers.