title: Injury surveillance in a rugby tournament.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To investigate injuries in international rugby football.
  
  
  METHODS
  All injuries that led to temporary stoppage of the game or to the substitution of a player during the Rugby World Cup prequalifying tournament were recorded. Six matches were played, involving the Arabian Gulf, Kenya, Namibia, and Zimbabwe.
  
  
  RESULTS
  47 injuries were recorded, giving an injury rate of eight per match. The number of injuries decreased from 38.3% in the first matches to 23.4% in the final ones. The most serious injury was a concussion and the majority of the injuries affected soft tissues. Anatomically, the lower limbs suffered most injuries (46.8%), followed by the head (21.3%), trunk (17.0%), and upper limbs (12.8%). Slightly more injuries occurred in the defensive half of the field of play (53.2%) than in the offensive half (46.8%). More injuries occurred in the second half (61.7%) than in the first half (38.3%).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Protective equipment should be introduced to minimise the number and seriousness of injuries in rugby.
authors.affiliation: Exercise and Sports Consultancy, Nairobi, Kenya.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Wekesa
authors.forename: J M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Asembo
authors.forename: W W
authors.initials: WW
authors.lastname: Njororai
mesh_terms: D001265:Athletic Injuries / Q000453:epidemiology; D006259:Craniocerebral Trauma / Q000453:epidemiology; D005538:Football / Q000293:injuries*; D006801:Humans; D007869:Leg Injuries / Q000453:epidemiology