An Epidemiologic Comparison of High School Sports Injuries Sustained in Practice and Competition
Male and female high school athletes are more likely to sustain injuries during official competitions such as games or races than when practicing their sports, according to a study by a team of researchers at the Nationwide Children’s Hospital and by Ohio State University, both based in Columbus.
Researchers found that students were more likely to be injured during competitive events, at 4.5 injuries per 1,000 competitions, while sustaining only 1.7 injuries per 1,000 practices. Football was the sport with the highest rate of injuries, both in practice and in competition.
The report estimates that boys and girls sustained about 1.4 million high school sports injuries during the 2005-06 school year.
The results are based on the electronic-survey responses of 100 nationally representative high schools.
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