Injuries and Illnesses Across 10 Years of Canada Games Competitions: 2009 - 2019.
Nicole J Chimera, Danielle Merasty, Monica R Lininger
PMID 36518838WHAT IT FOUND
Shoulder injuries and muscle strains were the most common injury findings at Canada Games, and female athletes had more recorded injuries and illnesses than male athletes.
Key findings
01Shoulder and muscle strains were the most common injury location and type, and respiratory illness was the most commonly affected system.
02Injury incidence was 362.8 per 1000 male athletes and 389.9 per 1000 female athletes, and illness incidence was 47.8 per 1000 male athletes and 64.5 per 1000 female athletes.
03Female athletes had greater odds of injury (1.12) and illness (1.37) than male athletes.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for PTs
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What it does not show
The study was a retrospective secondary analysis of records, so it could not control how each injury or illness was assessed or written up. Only the first report was counted unless a follow-up visit described a new injury, so ongoing care for the same problem may not show the full burden. Exposure and time loss data were not collected, so the study cannot calculate injury rates per training or competition time or separate time-loss injuries from injuries that did not stop play. Some sports had only male participants, only female participants, or data from only one Games, so sex comparisons in those sports were incomplete. The records came from athletes seeking medical attention at Canada Games, not from every athlete or every health problem, so unreported problems are not included.
The easy way to misread this
Do not read the higher female injury and illness figures as proof that female athletes are inherently more injured or ill than male athletes in all sport settings. The study counted first medical reports at Canada Games and did not collect exposure or time loss data, so it describes recorded care, not the full injury experience.