Conclusions Our results demonstrate that the existence of a relationship between training load and injury continues to be well supported in the literature and is strongest for subjective internal training load .
The directionality of this relationship appears to depend on the type and timeframe of load measured
Background The relationship between training load and musculoskeletal injury is a rapidly advancing area of research in need of an up date d systematic review .
How Much Rugby is Too Much? A Seven-Season Prospective Cohort Study of Match Exposure and Injury Risk in Professional Rugby Union Players
Introduction Numerous studies have documented the incidence and nature of injuries in professional rugby union , but few have identified specific risk factors for injury in this population using appropriate statistical methods . In particular , little is known about the role of previous short-term or longer-term match exposures in current injury risk in this setting . Objectives Our objective was to investigate the influence that match exposure has upon injury risk in rugby union . Method We conducted a seven-season ( 2006/7–2012/13 ) prospect i ve cohort study of time-loss injuries in 1253 English premiership professional players . Players ’ 12-month match exposure ( number of matches a player was involved in for ≥20 min in the preceding 12 months ) and 1-month match exposure ( number of full-game equivalent [ FGE ] matches in preceding 30 days ) were assessed as risk factors for injury using a nested frailty model and magnitude-based inferences . Results The 12-month match exposure was associated with injury risk in a non-linear fashion ; players who had been involved in fewer than ≈15 or more than ≈35 matches over the preceding 12-month period were more susceptible to injury . Monthly match exposure was linearly associated with injury risk ( hazard ratio [ HR ] : 1.14 per 2 st and ard deviation [ 3.2 FGE ] increase , 90 % confidence interval [ CI ] 1.08–1.20 ; likely harmful ) , although this effect was substantially attenuated for players in the upper quartile for 12-month match exposures ( > 28 matches ) . Conclusion A player ’s accumulated ( 12-month ) and recent ( 1-month ) match exposure substantially influences their current injury risk . Careful attention should be paid to planning the workloads and monitoring the responses of players involved in : ( 1 ) a high ( > ≈35 ) number of matches in the previous year , ( 2 ) a low ( < ≈15 ) number of matches in the previous year , and ( 3 ) a low-moderate number of matches in previous year but who have played intensively in the recent past . These findings make a major contribution to evidence -based policy decisions regarding match workload limits in professional rugby union
Conclusions Our results demonstrate that the existence of a relationship between training load and injury continues to be well supported in the literature and is strongest for subjective internal training load .
The directionality of this relationship appears to depend on the type and timeframe of load measured
Background The relationship between training load and musculoskeletal injury is a rapidly advancing area of research in need of an up date d systematic review .