Skip to main content
NCBI home page
British Journal of Sports Medicine logoLink to British Journal of Sports Medicine
. 2001 Feb;35(1):38–42. doi: 10.1136/bjsm.35.1.38

Influence of rugby injuries on players' subsequent health and lifestyle: beginning a long term follow up

A Lee 1, W Garraway 1, W Hepburn 1, R Laidlaw 1
PMCID: PMC1724293  PMID: 11157460

Abstract

Objectives—To describe the current rugby playing status of a cohort of 1169 men who had previously participated in an epidemiological survey of rugby injuries during the 1993–1994 season, and assess the consequences of rugby injuries sustained.

Methods—In May 1998, 911 (78%) men completed a questionnaire reporting their current involvement in rugby and the influence that the 324 (71%) injuries they had sustained four years earlier had since had on their health and wellbeing.

Results—The most common reasons given by the 390 (43%) ex-players for ceasing to play rugby were family (10%), employment (25%), and an injury sustained while playing rugby (26%), 80% of which were dislocations, strains, and sprains, mainly to the knee (35%), back (14%), and shoulder (9%). A significantly (χ2 test 21.7, df = 1, p<0.001) higher proportion of current players (90%) undertook (non-rugby) sporting activities compared with ex-players (78%). Few ex-players undertook coaching (12%) and refereeing (2%). Only 22 (9%) men reported significant negative effects to employment, family life, and health up to mid-1998 from injuries that occurred during the 1993–1994 season, although the impact on their lifestyle had been substantial in some cases.

Conclusions—With the recent increase in the incidence of dislocation, strain, and sprain injuries in rugby football, the findings of this follow up could have a great impact on the game in the future. Although this survey has shown that, so far, only a small proportion of players suffer significant effects of rugby injuries, four years is not long enough to assess the long term effects. This cohort of rugby players need to be followed up for at least a further 20 years to determine whether there is a higher incidence of subsequent degenerative joint disease or other long term sequelae to injuries sustained while playing rugby.

Key Words: follow up; injury; knee; lifestyle; rugby union; epidemiology

Full Text

The Full Text of this article is available as a PDF (152.1 KB).

Selected References

These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.

  1. Armour K. S., Clatworthy B. J., Bean A. R., Wells J. E., Clarke A. M. Spinal injuries in New Zealand rugby and rugby league--a twenty year survey. N Z Med J. 1997 Dec 12;110(1057):462–465. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  2. Berge J., Marque B., Vital J. M., Sénégas J., Caillé J. M. Age-related changes in the cervical spines of front-line rugby players. Am J Sports Med. 1999 Jul-Aug;27(4):422–429. doi: 10.1177/03635465990270040401. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  3. Bird Y. N., Waller A. E., Marshall S. W., Alsop J. C., Chalmers D. J., Gerrard D. F. The New Zealand Rugby Injury and Performance Project: V. Epidemiology of a season of rugby injury. Br J Sports Med. 1998 Dec;32(4):319–325. doi: 10.1136/bjsm.32.4.319. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  4. Blair S. N., Connelly J. C. How much physical activity should we do? The case for moderate amounts and intensities of physical activity. Res Q Exerc Sport. 1996 Jun;67(2):193–205. doi: 10.1080/02701367.1996.10607943. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  5. Burry H. C., Calcinai C. J. The need to make rugby safer. Br Med J (Clin Res Ed) 1988 Jan 16;296(6616):149–150. doi: 10.1136/bmj.296.6616.149. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  6. Croce P., Gregg J. R. Keeping fit when injured. Clin Sports Med. 1991 Jan;10(1):181–195. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  7. Garraway M., Macleod D. Epidemiology of rugby football injuries. Lancet. 1995 Jun 10;345(8963):1485–1487. doi: 10.1016/s0140-6736(95)91040-9. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  8. Garraway W. M., Lee A. J., Hutton S. J., Russell E. B., Macleod D. A. Impact of professionalism on injuries in rugby union. Br J Sports Med. 2000 Oct;34(5):348–351. doi: 10.1136/bjsm.34.5.348. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  9. Kew T., Noakes T. D., Kettles A. N., Goedeke R. E., Newton D. A., Scher A. T. A retrospective study of spinal cord injuries in Cape Province rugby players, 1963-1989. Incidence, mechanisms and prevention. S Afr Med J. 1991 Aug 3;80(3):127–133. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  10. Nicholl J. P., Coleman P., Williams B. T. The epidemiology of sports and exercise related injury in the United Kingdom. Br J Sports Med. 1995 Dec;29(4):232–238. doi: 10.1136/bjsm.29.4.232. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  11. Panush R. S., Inzinna J. D. Recreational activities and degenerative joint disease. Sports Med. 1994 Jan;17(1):1–5. doi: 10.2165/00007256-199417010-00001. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  12. Scher A. T. Premature onset of degenerative disease of the cervical spine in rugby players. S Afr Med J. 1990 Jun 2;77(11):557–558. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  13. Scher A. T. Rugby injuries to the cervical spine and spinal cord: a 10-year review. Clin Sports Med. 1998 Jan;17(1):195–206. doi: 10.1016/s0278-5919(05)70073-9. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  14. Scully D., Kremer J., Meade M. M., Graham R., Dudgeon K. Physical exercise and psychological well being: a critical review. Br J Sports Med. 1998 Jun;32(2):111–120. doi: 10.1136/bjsm.32.2.111. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  15. Silver J. R. Injuries of the spine sustained during rugby. Br J Sports Med. 1992 Dec;26(4):253–258. doi: 10.1136/bjsm.26.4.253. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  16. Targett S. G. Injuries in professional Rugby Union. Clin J Sport Med. 1998 Oct;8(4):280–285. doi: 10.1097/00042752-199810000-00005. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  17. Videman T., Battié M. C., Gibbons L. E., Manninen H., Gill K., Fisher L. D., Koskenvuo M. Lifetime exercise and disk degeneration: an MRI study of monozygotic twins. Med Sci Sports Exerc. 1997 Oct;29(10):1350–1356. doi: 10.1097/00005768-199710000-00012. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  18. van Mechelen W. National policies for promoting physical activity, physical fitness and better nutrition in Europe. World Rev Nutr Diet. 1997;81:136–147. doi: 10.1159/000059590. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  19. van Saase J. L., van Romunde L. K., Cats A., Vandenbroucke J. P., Valkenburg H. A. Epidemiology of osteoarthritis: Zoetermeer survey. Comparison of radiological osteoarthritis in a Dutch population with that in 10 other populations. Ann Rheum Dis. 1989 Apr;48(4):271–280. doi: 10.1136/ard.48.4.271. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Articles from British Journal of Sports Medicine are provided here courtesy of BMJ Publishing Group

RESOURCES