Sports Injuries in Germany – A Pilot Study

Problem: Sports accidents are omnipresent in all areas of sport. However, due to a lack of data, conclusions cannot be drawn about how many sports accidents occur in Germany each year. This study aims to provide an initial overview of sports injuries and the types of sports involved, serving as a foundation for a larger survey. Methods: From September 12th-16th, 2022, a representative survey was conducted via telephone (forsa.omniTel®), interviewing 2002 individuals in Germany aged 14 and older about their sports activities and injuries in the past 12 months. Results were analyzed using 95% confidence intervals (CI) and logistic regression to assess the impact of age and gender on injury probability (α=0.05). The distribution of injuries across sports was calculated using an iterative proportional fitting method and Bonferroni correction for significance levels. The original document was internally reviewed, contains no personal data, and is approved for publication, with no further ethics committee review required, as forsa, a member of ADM, complies with all legal and ethical standards, including GDPR. Results: It is estimated that 12.2% (CI=10.5 to 14.0%; CIadj=9.8 to 14.7%) of athletes in Germany have been injured during sport in the past 12 months, requiring medical treatment or a break from sport. Younger and male athletes were more likely to be injured than older and female athletes (age: p<0.001, padj<0.001; gender: p<0.001, padj<0.01). Most injuries occurred during running/walking/hiking (16%) and cycling (14%). Soccer (11%) and tennis (4%) had the highest injury rates among sports games. Conclusion: This pilot study offers crucial insights into sports injury prevalence in Germany. Future studies should include detailed injury types, severity and exposure times for more individualized preventive programs.