RESUMEN

Background/aim: The participation of individuals with physical impairment in sports has numerous benefits, yet there is also the risk of sustaining sport-related injuries or illnesses. Therefore, prevention programmes of these problems are needed to ensure that individuals can maintain a healthy, active lifestyle. Currently, very few prevention interventions are accessible for these athletes. Therefore, the article aims to describe the development process of the Tailored Injury Prevention in Adapted Sports intervention, an online tailored injury and illness prevention intervention for athletes with a physical impairment. Methods: The development was guided by the Knowledge Transfer Scheme (KTS). Results: In the first step, a cohort study and a qualitative study were conducted to define the problem statement. In the second step, a systematic review was performed in order to learn from theory. Steps 3 and 4 involved an iterative process involving collaboration with diverse expert groups. This included defining athletes' needs and creating a health problem blueprint, after which the intervention content was created. To ensure accuracy and completeness, a feedback loop was incorporated. In the final phase of this step, we refined the language used within the intervention together with athletes. Finally, an effect and process evaluation will take place in the last step of the KTS. Conclusions: Through a five-step approach of the KTS, we developed an online injury and illness prevention intervention for athletes with a physical impairment. This intervention provides direct, timely feedback based on their current health status. Furthermore, it takes the sport and the physical impairment of the athletes into account with regard to the given prevention advices.

RESUMEN

OBJECTIVES: Currently, the knowledge about the epidemiology of sport-related health problems of athletes with a physical impairment is limited. Therefore, this study aims to describe the prevalence, incidence and severity of sport-related health problems of athletes with a physical impairment in the Netherlands over a one sport season. DESIGN: Prospective cohort study. METHODS: Athletes (n = 99) with a physical impairment participated in this study. After completing a baseline questionnaire, athletes started a 40-week health monitoring period, during which they completed the Dutch translation of the OSTRC Questionnaire on Health Problems every week. Based on the reported information, injury and illness prevalence, incidence, weekly cumulative severity score, weekly time loss from sport and the total burden were calculated. RESULTS: A total of 368 health problems were reported by 95 athletes. These health problems consisted of 258 injuries and 110 illnesses. The average weekly prevalence of health problems was 48.0 %; for injuries 34.6 %, and illnesses 13.4 %. Differences were found when considering injury severity, with the highest severity scores for athletes with a limb deficiency. Furthermore, recreational athletes reported the highest injury severity scores, followed by athletes who competed nationally and athletes who competed internationally. CONCLUSIONS: Data from this study show a high average weekly prevalence of health problems, and differences amongst various impairment categories and sport levels when considering the severity of injuries. These results add to the knowledge regarding sport-related health problem epidemiology in this population, indicating that impairment category and sport level should be taken into account when developing injury prevention strategies.

Asunto(s)

Traumatismos en Atletas , Trastornos de Traumas Acumulados , Deportes , Humanos , Traumatismos en Atletas/epidemiología , Traumatismos en Atletas/prevención & control , Estudios Prospectivos , Atletas , Trastornos de Traumas Acumulados/epidemiología , Incidencia

RESUMEN

CONTEXT: Participation in sports is associated with a risk of sports-related health problems. For athletes with an impairment, sports-related health problems further burden an already restricted lifestyle, underlining the importance of prevention strategies in para-sports. OBJECTIVE: To provide a comprehensive overview with quality assessment of the literature on sports-related health problems, their etiology, and available preventive measures in para-sports following the steps of the Sequence of Prevention. DATA SOURCES: A literature search (in PubMed, Embase, SPORTDiscus, CINAHL and the Cochrane Library) was performed up to December 8, 2021, in collaboration with a medical information specialist. STUDY SELECTION: The search yielded 3006 articles, of which 64 met all inclusion criteria. STUDY DESIGN: Systematic review with quality assessment. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: Level 3. DATA EXTRACTION: Two independent researchers carried out the screening process and quality assessment. One researcher extracted data, and the Sequence of Prevention categorized evidence. RESULTS: A total of 64 studies were included, of which 61 reported on the magnitude and risk factors of sports-related health problems, while only 3 reported on the effectiveness of preventive measures. Of these, 30 studies were of high quality. Most studies (84%) included elite-level athletes. The reported injury incidence varied widely between sports (0-91 per 1000 athlete days) and impairment categories (1-50 per 1000 athlete days). The same applies to illness incidence with regard to different sports (3-49 per 1000 athlete days) and impairment categories (6-14 per 1000 athlete days). CONCLUSION: This review shows the current vast range of reported sport-related health problems in para-sports. There is limited evidence concerning the severity of these sports-related health problems and inconclusive evidence on the risk factors. Lastly, the evidence regarding the development and effectiveness of preventive measures for para-athletes is sparse.