Injuries in Iran Futsal National Teams: A Comparative Study of Incidence and Characteristics

BACKGROUND Futsal is a growing sport with lots of fans in many countries including Iran, but there are few papers in the literature which report injuries in top level futsal. OBJECTIVES The aim of this study is to record and analyze the incidence and characteristics of injuries in Iran futsal national teams from March 2011 to September 2012. PATIENTS AND METHODS 55 Iranian national futsal players participated in this prospective cohort study. Before entering the study, all players took part in Pre-Competition Medical Assessment (PCMA) in accordance with FIFA protocol. Team physicians recorded the injuries throughout the match and trainings in a special form which was designed for this purpose. Finally, data analysis was done with the SPSS software. RESULTS The total exposure time for all players was 24326 hours (21138 hours during training and 3188 hours during matches). During the study period, 32 of the 55 national players (58.2%) incurred 54 injuries (incidence rate = 2.22 injuries per 1000 players-hours). The incidence rate of injury in female players was significantly higher than male players (P = 0.001). The majority of injuries (85.2%) were located on the lower extremities. The ankle was the most frequent injury location (40.7%) and sprain was the most frequent type of injury. CONCLUSIONS Injuries are common among futsal players and female players are more prone to injuries than male players. The ankle is the most frequent site and sprain is the most frequent type of injury among futsal players.