title: Ability of preseason body composition and physical fitness to predict the risk of injury in male collegiate hockey players.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Injuries in collegiate ice hockey can result in significant time lost from play. The identification of modifiable risk factors relating to a player's physical fitness allows the development of focused training and injury prevention programs targeted at reducing these risks.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  To determine the ability of preseason fitness outcomes to predict in-season on-ice injury in male collegiate ice hockey players.
  
  
  METHODS
  Prognostic cohort study.
  
  
  METHODS
  Level 3.
  
  
  METHODS
  Athlete demographics, percentage body fat, aerobic capacity (300-m shuttle run; 1-, 1.5-, 5-mile run), and strength assessment (sit-ups, push-ups, grip strength, bench press, Olympic cleans, squats) data were collected at the beginning of 8 successive seasons for 1 male collegiate ice hockey team. Hockey-related injury data and player-level practice/game athlete exposure (AE) data were also prospectively collected. Seventy-nine players participated (203 player-years). Injury was defined as any event that resulted in the athlete being unable to participate in 1 or more practices or games following the event. Multivariable logistic regression was performed to determine the ability of the independent variables to predict the occurrence of on-ice injury.
  
  
  RESULTS
  There were 132 injuries (mean, 16.5 per year) in 55 athletes. The overall injury rate was 4.4 injuries per 1000 AEs. Forwards suffered 68% of the injuries. Seventy percent of injuries occurred during games with equal distribution between the 3 periods. The mean number of days lost due to injury was 7.8 ± 13.8 (range, 1-127 days). The most common mechanism of injury was contact with another player (54%). The odds of injury in a forward was 1.9 times (95% CI, 1.1-3.4) that of a defenseman and 3 times (95% CI, 1.2-7.7) that of a goalie. The odds of injury if the player's body mass index (BMI) was ≥25 kg/m(2) was 2.1 times (95% CI, 1.1-3.8) that of a player with a BMI <25 kg/m(2). The odds ratios for bench press, maximum sit-ups, and Olympic cleans were statistically significant but close to 1.0, and therefore the clinical relevance is unknown.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Forwards have higher odds of injury relative to other player positions. BMI was predictive of on-ice injury. Aerobic fitness and maximum strength outcomes were not strongly predictive of on-ice injury.
authors.affiliation: Department of Surgery, Dalhousie University, Saint John Regional Hospital, Saint John, New Brunswick, Canada.
authors.forename: John A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Grant
authors.affiliation: MedSport, Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan ; Department of Athletics, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan.
authors.forename: Asheesh
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Bedi
authors.affiliation: School of Physical Therapy, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri.
authors.forename: Jennifer
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Kurz
authors.affiliation: Department of Athletics, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan.
authors.forename: Richard
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Bancroft
authors.affiliation: MedSport, Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan ; Department of Epidemiology, School of Public Health, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan.
authors.forename: Joel J
authors.initials: JJ
authors.lastname: Gagnier
authors.affiliation: MedSport, Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan ; Department of Athletics, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan.
authors.forename: Bruce S
authors.initials: BS
authors.lastname: Miller
keywords: fitness parameters; hockey; prediction; risk of injury