LAUSR

CONTEXT While elite adolescent female soccer athletes have unique injury risk factors and management challenges, limited epidemiological data exist for this population. OBJECTIVE Describe lower body injury patterns and determine whether a screening hip physical examination is predictive of future injuries in elite adolescent female soccer athletes. DESIGN Prospective cohort study. SETTING One United States premier soccer club. PARTICIPANTS One hundred seventy-seven female soccer athletes ages 10-18 years old (mean 14.6±1.8 years) completed a demographic questionnaire and screening hip physical examination which included range of motion and provocative tests. INTERVENTIONS At least five years after baseline screening, athletes completed an electronic follow-up injury survey. Injury was defined as pain that interfered with sporting activity. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE(S) In addition to descriptive analyses of athletes' injury profiles, associations between players' baseline demographics and subsequent injury profiles were evaluated using chi-square tests, and potential predictors of injury based on players' baseline hip examinations were evaluated using multivariable logistic regression. RESULTS Ninety-four of 177 athletes (53%) were contacted for follow-up, and 88/94 (93.6%) completed the survey. With mean follow-up of 91.9±9.3 months (range 66-108 months), 42/88 (47.7%) reported sustaining a new lower body injury. The low back was the most commonly injury region (16/42, 38.1%). Almost half of all injured athletes (20/42, 47.6%) sustained overuse injuries, and 16/42 (38.1%) had an incomplete recovery. Higher body mass index and reaching menarche were associated with sustaining an injury (p=0.03 and 0.04, respectively). Athletes' baseline hip examinations were not predictive of their subsequent rate of lower body, lumbopelvic, overuse, or incomplete recovery injury (all p>0.05). CONCLUSIONS Lower body injuries were common in elite adolescent female soccer athletes, with over one third of injured athletes reporting permanent negative impact of the injury on their playing ability. Baseline hip physical examinations were not associated with future injury rate.