HOME HELP CONTACT US SUBSCRIPTIONS ARCHIVE SEARCH TABLE OF CONTENTS		QUICK SEARCH:   [advanced] Author: Keyword(s): Year:  Vol:  Page:
Sign In to gain access to subscriptions and/or personal tools.

This Article Full Text Full Text (PDF) All Versions of this Article: 32/3/608    most recent 0363546503262172v1 Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Services Email this article to a friend Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in ISI Web of Science Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Request Permissions Request Reprints Citing Articles Citing Articles via HighWire Citing Articles via ISI Web of Science (5) Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Matz, S. O. Articles by Nibbelink, G. Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Matz, S. O. Articles by Nibbelink, G. Related Collections Female Athletes Other

Injuries in Intercollegiate Women’s Lacrosse

Samuel O. Matz, MD^*,, and Gregg Nibbelink, MS, ATC

From the Advanced Centers for Orthopaedic Surgery and Sports Medicine and McDaniel College, Westminster, Maryland

^* Address correspondence to Samuel O. Matz, MD, Advanced Centers for Orthopaedic Surgery and Sports Medicine, 1 Village Square, Westminster, MD 21157 (e-mail: smatz{at}acossm.com).

Background: Historically, the sport of women’s lacrosse has required little or no protective equipment. Recently, there has been increasing concern over trauma to the face and head incurred during play. A rule change passed in spring 2003, during the course of this study, mandates goggles in 2005.

Purpose: To survey injuries in women’s lacrosse over multiple seasons and institutions and to categorize injury rates and patterns.

Study Design: A prospective survey.

Methods: A standard report-of-injury form was sent to participating institutions. Injuries were defined by athletic training staff as any event resulting in the athlete missing one or more games or practices.

Results: The overall injury rate for women’s lacrosse for the 2001–2002 and 2002–2003 seasons from participating schools was 3.8 per 1000 athlete exposures. The rate of head and face injuries was 1.4 per 1000 athlete exposures, representing 38.5% of all injuries incurred. The rate of eye injuries was 0.43 per 1000 athlete exposures, accounting for 11.5% of the total injuries. The practice injury rate was 2.7 per 1000 athlete exposures, and the competition injury rate was 8.8 per 1000 athlete exposures.

Conclusion: Data support the future requirements for protective eyewear. There is significant and increasing exposure for head and face trauma. Further investigation is needed to monitor injury patterns in women’s lacrosse as rules for protective gear evolve.

Key Words: women’s lacrosse • injuries • intercollegiate

This article has been cited by other articles:

				R. Y. Hinton, A. E. Lincoln, J. L. Almquist, W. A. Douoguih, and K. M. Sharma Epidemiology of Lacrosse Injuries in High School-Aged Girls and Boys: A 3-Year Prospective Study Am. J. Sports Med., September 1, 2005; 33(9): 1305 - 1314. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				P S Echlin, R E G Upshur, D M Peck, and E N Skopelja Craniomaxillofacial injury in sport: a review of prevention research Br. J. Sports Med., May 1, 2005; 39(5): 254 - 263. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]