Abstract
This study aims to analyze the incidence, location, type, and mechanisms of injuries and possible injury risk factors among all levels of Korean female professional golfers. This was a prospective study with a follow-up period of 24 months. A total of 363 members of the Korean Ladies Professional Golf Association (KLPGA), who competed in tournaments during the 2015 and 2016 seasons, took part in the study. The incidence of injury varied by tournament level and was significantly higher in Division II (11.1/1000AEs) and Division III (13.4/1000AEs) than in Division I (5.6/1000AEs) (p < 0.05). The most common location and type of injury were the shoulder/clavicle (Division I: 14.1%, Division II: 15.7%, Division III: 17.3%) and the tendinosis or ten-dinopathy (21.2%) (Division I: 23.7%, Division II: 21.2%, Division III: 18.5%), respectively. The most common mechanism of injury was the golf swing (47.9%–51.6% for the three divisions), and the most frequent specific phase of injury was upon ball impact (23.5%–30.9%). Multivariate analysis revealed that body mass index and the number of previous season competitions were significantly associated with injury risk in female golfers. The other factors examined did not have a significant association with golf-related injuries. In conclusion, KLPGA golfers were commonly exposed to injuries and showed a higher rate of injuries in competitions than practices, with significantly higher in Division II, III than Division I. However, overall, there was no significant difference in the location, type, mechanism and risk factors for injuries among the division level of KLPGA.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 492-500 |
| Number of pages | 9 |
| Journal | Journal of Sports Science and Medicine |
| Volume | 17 |
| Issue number | 3 |
| Publication status | Published - 2018 Sept |
Bibliographical note
Funding Information:The authors wish to thank all golfers in KLPGA for their participation in this study. We deeply appreciate the cooperation of all team physicians, as well as YISSEM and SOL hospital medical supervisors who volunteered to collect the data for this project. We also thank the Korea Ladies Professional Golf Association for its practical assistance. This project was financially supported by the Yonsei Institute of Sports Science and Exercise Medicine (YISSEM 2015-51-0455), which is an International Research Centre for Prevention of Injury and Protection Athlete Health supported by the International Olympic Committee (IOC). The experiments comply with the current laws of the country in which they were performed. The authors have no conflict of interest to declare.
Publisher Copyright:
© Journal of Sports Science and Medicine (2018).
All Science Journal Classification (ASJC) codes
- Orthopedics and Sports Medicine
- Physical Therapy, Sports Therapy and Rehabilitation