Athletic Trainers, a First Line of Defense for High School Injury Prevention among Girls' Soccer and Basketball Players (2006/07-2008/09)

Background: Sports injuries impose physical, emotional, and economic burdens on United States (US) high school athletes and their families. Certified athletic trainers (AT) are clinicians trained in both preventing and treating/managing sports injuries. Athletes in less than 50% of US high schools have access to the services of an AT.

Methods: Data from two surveillance systems which captured sports injury data from girls' soccer and basketball during 2006/07-2008/09 -- High School RIO^TM (HSRIO), a national sample of schools with ATs and Sports Injury Surveillance System (SISS), a sample of Chicago public high schools without ATs -- were compared to evaluate the impact of ATs.

Results: Injury rates were higher in SISS schools than HSRIO schools in soccer (RR: 1.73, 95% CI: 1.51-2.00) and basketball (RR: 1.22, 95% CI: 1.03-1.45). Injury patterns were similar overall, but rates of recurrent injury were higher in SISS schools than HSRIO schools in soccer (RR: 5.85, 95% CI: 4.39-7.78) and basketball (RR: 2.97, 95% CI 2.12-4.14). Concussion rates were higher in HSRIO schools than SISS schools in soccer (RR: 8.05, 95% CI: 2.00-32.51) and basketball (RR: 4.50, 95% CI: 1.43-14.16).

Conclusions: Athletic trainers safeguard high school athletes' health through prevention efforts resulting in lower injury rates and treatment/management efforts resulting in lower recurrent injury rates. Additionally, concussed athletes are more likely to be diagnosed in schools with ATs and thus less likely to return to play prematurely. If confirmed in a larger sample, these findings should drive increased AT coverage of high school athletes.