Prevalence And Burden Of Health Problem In Military Entry Trainee

PURPOSE: To measure the burden of health problems of military entry trainees, to categorize injuries by body parts, and to identify mechanisms of injuries. METHODS: This study was a prospective cohort study. A total of 73 individuals agreed to participate. We used Oslo Sports Trauma Research Center (OSTRC) questionnaire to collect injury records. The survey was conducted every weekend among trainees participating in a 12- week initial entry training program for Navy special forces. Injuries were classified as acute injuries or overuse injuries by their causes. Substantial injury was defined based on the responses, participants who were unable to fully participate in training or experienced moderate or higher changes in training volume or performance. RESULTS: A total of 769 surveys were collected. Among them, 178 new injuries occurred during the training. An average of 2.78 injury or pain incidents occurred during the training. The majority of injuries were attributed to overuse injuries caused by repetitive use (Table 1). The body part with the highest cumulative injury score was the knee. In substantial injuries, the ankle injury score was the highest. The majority of knee injuries were classified as overuse injuries, while ankle injuries had a higher proportion of acute injuries (Table 2). CONCLUSION: Present study could improve the understanding physical complaints and conditions of military trainees. It will serve as fundamental data for establishing an injury prevention program. Table 1. - Characteristics Of Inuries According To The Body Parts Total injury Substantial injury n (%) Overuse Acute Total Total Trunk Ear 9 (2.8) 2 (3.4) 11 (2.9) 6 (10.2) Lumbar 15 (4.7) 1 (1.7) 16 (4.3) 3 (5.1) Upper limb Shoulder 33 (10.4) 6 (10.3) 39 (10.5) 3 (5.1) Wrist 11 (3.5) 2 (3.4) 13 (3.5) 3 (5.1) Lower limb Thigh 11 (3.5) 1 (1.7) 12 (3.2) 2 (3.4) Knee 110 (34.8) 6 (10.3) 116 (31.1) 11 (18.6) Calf/Tibia 26 (8.2) 0 (0) 26 (7.0) 11 (18.6) Achilles Tendon 11 (3.5) 0 (0) 11 (2.9) 0 (0) Ankle 49 (15.5) 32 (55.2) 81 (21.7) 13 (22) Foot 19 (6.0) 2 (3.4) 21 (5.6) 2 (3.4) Others 22 (7.0) 6 (10.3) 28 (7.5) 5 (8.5) Total 316 (100) 58 (100) 374 (100) 59 (100) Table 2. - Incidence and Prevalence of Injuries Acute injury Overuse injury Total Incidence No. of New Cases 28 150 178 Cases/Trainee/12wk 0.44 2.34 2.78 Prevalence No. of Cases All Health Problems 58 316 374 Substantial Health Problems 8 51 59 Weakly Averaage Prevalence All Health Problems 7.5% 41.1% 48.6% Substantial Health Problems 1.0% 6.6% 7.7% Cumulative Severity Score 1965 10354 12319