Objectives: To present the first comprehensive epidemiological profile of hospital-treated injuries sustained by female cricketers from 2002-2003 to 2013-2014 in Victoria, Australia.
Design: Analysis of routinely collected hospital data (detailed case-series).
Methods: A retrospective analysis of hospital-treatment data associated with cricket injuries sustained by women between 1 July 2002 and 30 June 2014, inclusive were extracted from databases held by the Victorian Injury Surveillance Unit in Australia.
Results: Over the 12-year period, 668 cases were treated in Victoria. Of these, 547 were emergency department (ED)-presentations. There were 121 hospital-admissions, of which, the length of stay was <2 days for 78.5% cases. All cases were treated and released, and no fatalities were reported. The 10-14 year age group most frequently presented to ED (19.9%) and were most commonly admitted to hospital (16.5% of the total admissions). Fractures were the most common cause of hospital-admissions (47.1%) but only accounted for 17.2% of the ED-presentations. Dislocations, sprains and strains, were the most common (36.4%) cause of ED-presentations. The head was the most commonly injured anatomical location (27.8% of ED-presentations and 28.1% of hospital-admissions), followed by the wrist and hand (27.8% ED-presentations and 17.4% hospital-admissions).
Conclusions: These findings provide the first overview of the nature of injuries requiring hospital attendance in female cricketers, and a foundation to inform the development of targeted injury prevention programs for female cricketers.
Keywords: Community sports; Female athlete; Injury prevention; Injury surveillance; Recreational sports; Youth sports.
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