An Epidemiological Study of Ankle Injuries Among Football Players At A Division I University

Ankle injuries are one of the most common injuries experienced by collegiate football players1. Analysis of ankle injury reports can help sports medicine staff prevent these types of injuries among football athletes by better understanding the factors surrounding the injury2. The purpose of this study was to examine the risk factors associated with ankle injuries (N=120) experienced by football players (N=222) at a Division I University during three football seasons (August 2013-December 2015). METHODS: De-identified data from the Sports Injury Monitoring System (SIMS) was used to calculate ankle injury incidence rates (per 1,000 exposures) by player position and type of field (grass vs. turf). Risk profiles of ankle injuries were also examined by the severity of the injury and the activity taking place at the time of the injury. RESULTS: Overall, the ankle incidence rate was 1.74 injuries per 1,000 athlete-exposures (A-E). By playing surface, grass had a higher incidence rate (2.26 per 1,000 A-E) compared to turf (1.14 per 1,000 A-E). Incidence rates vary by player position and type of field. DISCUSSION: Ankle injuries were at highest risk to be a sprain on a grass field while wearing full pads during practice and unlikely to result in missed activities.