title: Injuries in professional male soccer players in the Netherlands: a prospective cohort study.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Injuries are a major adverse event in a soccer player's career. Reducing injury incidence requires a thorough knowledge of the epidemiology of soccer injuries.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  To investigate the incidence and characteristics of injuries in the Dutch premier soccer league.
  
  
  METHODS
  Cohort study.
  
  
  METHODS
  The Dutch premier soccer league.
  
  
  METHODS
  During the 2009-2010 soccer season, a total of 217 professional soccer players from 8 teams were prospectively followed.
  
  
  METHODS
  The medical staff recorded time-loss injuries, including information on injuries (ie, type, body part, duration) and exposure data for training sessions and matches.
  
  
  RESULTS
  A total of 286 injuries were recorded, affecting 62.7% of the players. The overall injury incidence was 6.2 injuries per 1000 player-hours, 2.8 in training sessions and 32.8 in matches. Most of the recorded injuries were acute (68.5%). Eight percent of the injuries were classified as recurrent. Injuries were most likely to be located in the lower extremities (82.9%). Injury time loss ranged from 1 to 752 days, with a median of 8 days. Knee injuries had the greatest consequences in terms of days of absence from soccer play (on average, 45 days). The most common diagnosis was muscle/tendon injury of the lower extremities (32.9%).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Injury risk in the Dutch premier soccer league is high, especially during matches. Preventive measures should focus on the most common diagnoses, namely, muscle/tendon injuries of the lower extremities.
authors.affiliation: Netherlands Organization for Applied Scientific Research (TNO), Leiden;
authors.forename: Janine H
authors.initials: JH
authors.lastname: Stubbe
authors.forename: Anne-Marie M C
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: van Beijsterveldt
authors.forename: Sissi
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: van der Knaap
authors.forename: Jasper
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Stege
authors.forename: Evert A
authors.initials: EA
authors.lastname: Verhagen
authors.forename: Willem
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: van Mechelen
authors.forename: Frank J G
authors.initials: FJ
authors.lastname: Backx
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001265:Athletic Injuries / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology; D015331:Cohort Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D007869:Leg Injuries / Q000145:classification / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology; D035002:Lower Extremity / Q000293:injuries*; D008297:Male; D009426:Netherlands / Q000453:epidemiology; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012916:Soccer / Q000293:injuries / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D017695:Soft Tissue Injuries / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology; D013708:Tendon Injuries / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology
keywords: elite athletes; epidemiology; football; incidence