Evidence map›Paper›PMID 31245431›Full record

ArticleOrthopaedic journal of sports medicine2019

Lower Back Injuries in National Collegiate Athletic Association Football Players: A 5-Season Epidemiological Study.

Justin L Makovicka, Karan A Patel, David G Deckey, Jeffrey D Hassebrock, Andrew S Chung, Sailesh V Tummala, Thomas C Hydrick, Matthew Gulbrandsen, David E Hartigan, Anikar Chhabra

Open access · goldAbstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Orthopaedic journal of sports medicine, 2019. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 8 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
8citing papers in PubMed, 1 pooled it
2.3field-weighted citation impact, top 14% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

8 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 17 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Incidence of and risk factors for lumbar disc herniation with radiculopathy in adults: a systematic review.European spine journal : official publication of the European Spine Society, the European Spinal Deformity Society, and the European Section of the Cervical Spine Research Society · 2025
    Pooled it
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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

10 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.

Justin L MakovickaDepartment of Orthopedic Surgery, Mayo Clinic, Phoenix, Arizona, USA.
Karan A PatelDepartment of Orthopedic Surgery, Mayo Clinic, Phoenix, Arizona, USA.
David G DeckeyDepartment of Orthopedic Surgery, Mayo Clinic, Phoenix, Arizona, USA.
Jeffrey D HassebrockDepartment of Orthopedic Surgery, Mayo Clinic, Phoenix, Arizona, USA.
Andrew S ChungDepartment of Orthopedic Surgery, Mayo Clinic, Phoenix, Arizona, USA.
Sailesh V TummalaJohn A. Burns School of Medicine, University of Hawaii, Honolulu, Hawaii, USA.
Thomas C HydrickAlix School of Medicine, Mayo Clinic, Phoenix, Arizona, USA.
Matthew GulbrandsenCollege of Medicine, University of Arizona-Phoenix, Phoenix, Arizona, USA.
David E HartiganDepartment of Orthopedic Surgery, Mayo Clinic, Phoenix, Arizona, USA.
Anikar ChhabraDepartment of Orthopedic Surgery, Mayo Clinic, Phoenix, Arizona, USA.
Mayo Clinic Hospital · USUniversity of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa · US

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundLow back injuries are common in collegiate football players and can frequently lead to persistent pain, reinjuries, and time lost from participation. PURPOSE: To describe the epidemiology of back injuries in National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) football players during the 2009/2010 through 2013/2014 academic years utilizing the NCAA Injury Surveillance Program (ISP) database. STUDY

designDescriptive epidemiology study.

methodsA convenience sample of NCAA varsity football teams was utilized to determine the rates and patterns of back injuries as well as to generate national injury estimates. The rates and distribution of back injuries were identified within the context of mechanism of injury, injury chronicity, and time lost from sport. Injury rates were calculated as the number of injuries divided by the total number of athlete-exposures (AEs). Incidence rate ratios were calculated to compare the rates of injury between season, event type, mechanism of injury, injury chronicity, and time lost from sport.

resultsNationally, there were 267 low back injuries reported in the database. These were used to estimate 7076 back injuries over the 5-year period, approximately 82% of which were new injuries. The injuries occurred at a rate of 2.70 per 10,000 AEs. Overall, injuries were 3.12 times more likely to occur in competitions than in practices. Athletes were 4.67 times more likely to sustain a back injury during the preseason compared with the postseason but were 1.41 times more likely to sustain a low back injury during the preseason compared with the regular season. Both contact and noncontact were reported equally as the mechanism of injury (37.8% and 38.3%, respectively), and unspecified low back pain was the most common injury (64.2%). Only 1.6% of patients required surgery for their injury, and the majority of athletes (59.6%) returned to play within 24 hours.

conclusionThere was a relatively high rate of lumbar back injuries at the collegiate level (2.70/10,000 AEs), the majority of which were new injuries. About 18% of reported injuries were reinjuries. Although very few required surgery, a careful examination and work-up should be conducted to evaluate each injury. Regimented physical therapy and reconditioning programs are recommended to avert reinjuries.

Indexed as

back injuryback painepidemiologyfootball (American)lumbar spine

Identifiers

PMID31245431
PMCPMC6582304
OpenAlexW2950646644

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY-NC-ND
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.