Table 5 Systemic factors for lower extremity injuries.
| Determinant | Author | Injury | Specification of determinant | Outcome (95% CI) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Age | Taunton et al, 200319 | Overall injuries* | F Age >50 y | RR = 1.92 (1.11 to 3.33)† |
| New injuries* | F Age <31 y | RR = 0.58 (0.34 to 0.97)† | ||
| Satterthwaite et al, 199917 | Stiffness and/or pain in front thigh | Age 25–29 y (ref <25 y) | OR = 1.42 (0.79 to 2.53)† | |
| Stiffness and/or pain in front thigh | Age 30–34 y (ref <25 y) | OR = 1.83 (1.04 to 3.22)† | ||
| Stiffness and/or pain in front thigh | Age 35–39 y (ref <25 y) | OR = 1.34 (0.77 to 2.31)† | ||
| Stiffness and/or pain in front thigh | Age ⩾40 y (ref <25 y) | OR = 0.96 (0.56 to 1.63)† | ||
| Stiffness and/or pain in calf | Age 25–29 y (ref <25 y) | OR = 0.60 (0.32 to 1.13)† | ||
| Stiffness and/or pain in calf | Age 30–34 y (ref <25 y) | OR = 0.43 (0.23 to 0.78)† | ||
| Stiffness and/or pain in calf | Age 35–39 y (ref <25 y) | OR = 0.56 (0.31 to 1.01)† | ||
| Stiffness and/or pain in calf | Age ⩾40 y (ref <25 y) | OR = 0.40 (0.23 to 0.73)† | ||
| Wen et al, 199821 | Knee injuries | Higher age‡ | RR = 2.09 (0.95 to 4.58)† | |
| Overall injuries* | Higher age (miles)§ | RR = 1.08 (0.99 to 1.17)† | ||
| Lower age (miles)§ | RR = 0.39 (0.15 to 0.97)† | |||
| Macera et al, 198914 | Lower extremity injuries | M, higher age | OR = 1.0 (1.0 to 1.0)† | |
| M, higher age | OR = 1.0 (0.9 to 1.0)† | |||
| Kretsch et al, 198411 | Overall injuries* | Age 14–20 y (ref ⩾41 y) | p<0.025 | |
| Nicholl & Williams, 198215 | Overall injuries* | Age 40+ y | p<0.05 | |
| Macera et al, 199123 | Lower extremity musculoskeletal problems | M, higher age | OR = 1.0 (1.0 to 1.0)† | |
| F, higher age | OR = 1.0 (0.9 to 1.1)† | |||
| Jakobsen et al, 198922 | Overall injuries | Lower age | p<0.01 | |
| Nicholl & Williams, 198225 | Overall injuries* | Age <40 y (half marathon) | OR = 2.12 (1.13 to 3.98) | |
| Age <40 y (marathon) | OR = 1.31 (0.76 to 2.25) | |||
| Sex | Satterthwaite et al, 199917 | Stiffness and/or pain in hamstring | M | OR = 1.60 (1.04 to 2.47)† |
| Stiffness and/or pain in hip | F | OR = 1.88 (1.15 to 3.06)† | ||
| Stiffness and/or pain in calf | M | OR = 1.86 (1.29 to 2.68)† | ||
| Bennell et al, 19969 | Stress fractures | F | OR = 3.20 (0.42 to 24.42) | |
| Macera et al, 198914 | Lower extremity injuries | F | OR = 0.89 (0.58 to 1.37) | |
| Nicholl & Williams, 198215 | Overall injuries* | F | p<0.05 | |
| Macera et al, 199123 | Lower extremity musculoskeletal problems | F (marathon) | OR = 1.49 (0.53 to 4.25) | |
| F (5 and 10 km) | OR = 0.60 (0.32 to 1.10) | |||
| Jakobsen et al, 198922 | Overall injuries | F | p>0.05 | |
| Nicholl & Williams, 198225 | Overall injuries* | F (half marathon) | OR = 1.13 (0.63 to 2.01) | |
| F (marathon) | OR = 0.74 (0.34 to 1.61) | |||
| Height | Walter et al, 198920 | New injuries* | M 170–179 cm (average) (ref <170) | OR = 2.04 (1.15 to 3.46)† |
| M ⩾180 cm (tallest) (ref <170) | OR = 2.30 (1.29 to 3.90)† | |||
| F 160–169 cm (average) (ref <160) | OR = 1.29 (0.65 to 2.48)† | |||
| F ⩾170 cm (tallest) (ref <160) | OR = 0.78 (0.32 to 1.97)† | |||
| Weight | Wen et al, 199821 | Foot injuries | Higher weight‡ | RR = 0.94 (0.89 to 0.99)† |
| BMI | Taunton et al, 200319 | Overall injury* | M, BMI >26 | RR = 0.41 (0.21 to 0.79)† |
| Macera et al, 198914 | Lower extremity injuries | M, BMI (>74th centile) | OR = 0.7 (0.5 to 1.2)† | |
| M, BMI (<26th centile) | OR = 1.2 (0.7 to 1.9)† | |||
| F, BMI (>74th centile) | OR = 3.0 (0.5 to 18.8)† | |||
| F, BMI (<26th centile) | OR = 2.0 (0.6 to 6.6)† | |||
| Alignment | Lun et al, 200412 | Overall injuries | Left subtalar varus | CI = 0.2 to 4.2 |
| Wen et al, 199821 | Overall injuries* | Lower leg length difference (h)§ | RR = 1.96 (1.07 to 3.58)† | |
| Knee injuries | Higher arch index (h)§ | RR = 0 (0 to 0.37)† | ||
| Shin injuries | Lower heel valgus (miles)§ | RR = 0.08 (0.01 to 0.74)† | ||
| Foot injuries | Higher heel valgus (miles)§ | RR = 0.09 (0.01 to 0.81)† | ||
| Higher right arch index (h)§ | RR = 0.11 (0.01 to 0.90)† | |||
| Lower right arch index (h)§ | RR = 0.25 (0.05 to 1.20)† | |||
| Higher left tubercle–sulcus angle (miles)§ | RR = 11.02 (2.00 to 60.86)† | |||
| Higher knee varus (miles)§ | RR = 1.09 (1.03 to 1.15)† | |||
| Higher arch index (h)§ | RR = 0 (0 to 8.21)† | |||
| Higher heel valgus (miles)§ | RR = 0.76 (0.58 to 0.98)† | |||
| Higher heel valgus (h) § | RR = 0.74 (0.58 to 0.94)† |
*Not‐running injuries and running injuries not involving the lower extremity were included, to establish the outcome.
†Represents adjusted OR or RR.
‡RRs were calculated dividing the number of injured runners by the total number of runner‐weeks accumulated (relative incidence ratios).
§RRs were obtained from special subgroups in which information on distances run (miles) and time spent running (hours) was measured.
BMI, body mass index; CI, confidence interval; F, female; M, male; OR, odds ratio; ref, reference; RR, relative risk; y, years.