Incidence Rates and Pathology Types of Boxing-Specific Injuries: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis of Epidemiology Studies in the 21st Century.

Background: To the best of our knowledge, an evidence-based investigation into 21st-century boxing-specific injury rates and types has yet to be performed. Purpose: To provide an overview and quantitative synthesis of the incidence rates (IRs) and pathological categorizations of boxing-specific injuries in the 21st century. Study Design: Systematic review; Level of evidence, 3. Methods: Following PRISMA (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses) guidelines, we searched literature published from January 2000 to November 2021 in PubMed and the Cochrane Library systematically for qualifying epidemiology studies of organized boxing activities across the world. Two independent reviewers completed the literature review, data extraction, and quality assessment. The IRs of injuries per 1000 boxers (IR Results: Out of an initial 9584 articles, 14 studies were included, with most (11/14) having a moderate level of quality. The pooled IR Conclusion: IRs of injury remain high in professional boxing, although they have decreased in the past 10 years in amateur boxing. Soft tissue contusion was the most common injury type. Better exposure measurements and epidemiologic indicators should be applied in future studies. Registration: CRD42021289993 (PROSPERO).