title: Effects of footwear on comfort and injury in professional rugby league.
abstract: The aim of this study was to determine the effectiveness of a tailored footwear programme on lower-limb comfort in professional rugby league players. The study was conducted over 30 weeks and involved two professional teams (n = 59 players) from the Australian National Rugby League competition. One team was assigned to a footwear programme (intervention), while players from the control group continued usual practices of self-selected footwear. The tailored footwear programme consisting of player education, prescription of footwear, and frequent rotation of footwear resulted in a lower incidence of injury and higher comfort ratings. The intervention group had fewer lower-limb injuries (P = 0.005; Cohen d = 0.72) and higher comfort ratings (P < 0.001, Cohen d = 1.24) than the control group. Specifically, the intervention group reported a lower incidence of poor comfort events (mean = 3.8, s = 2.7) than the control group (mean = 7.9, s = 3.7). Observations also included fewer time loss events in the intervention (mean = 6.3, s = 4.8) than the control group (mean = 11.0, s = 6.3) and reduced injuries per 1000 h in the intervention (24.79/1000) than the control group (30.76/1000). These findings should help medical advisers improve footwear comfort in sportspeople and so reduce the incidence of related injuries.
authors.affiliation: School of Sport and Exercise Science, Faculty of Arts, Education and Human Development, Victoria University, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. michael.kinchington@live.vu.edu.au
authors.forename: Michael A
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Kinchington
authors.forename: Kevin A
authors.initials: KA
authors.lastname: Ball
authors.forename: Geraldine
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Naughton
mesh_terms: D000041:Absenteeism; D000328:Adult; D001265:Athletic Injuries / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000517:prevention & control*; D001315:Australia; D003258:Consumer Behavior; D005538:Football / Q000293:injuries*; D006266:Health Education; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D035002:Lower Extremity / Q000293:injuries*; D010146:Pain / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000517:prevention & control*; D055656:Prescriptions; D012775:Shoes; D019876:Sports Equipment; D055815:Young Adult