Injuries and illnesses in long-track speed skating

Objectives: The purpose of this project was to describe the weekly prevalence of common injuries and illnesses that occur in long-track speed skating. This will benefit medical personnel who work with long-track speed skaters, so they can know what to expect in their work with these athletes, as well as sports physicians in general and medical personnel in emergency rooms and hospitals. Materials and Methods: This was a prospective observational cohort (health surveillance) study. 9 athletes from the Norwegian Speed Skating national team filled out a weekly questionnaire from January 2013 to January 2014, and 18 athletes filled out a weekly questionnaire from December 2016 to February 2018. A total of 8 athletes were part of both registration periods, resulting in a total of 23 unique athletes in this project. The athletes were asked if they had experienced any health problems during the last week, and to what degree the eventual health problem(s) had affected their training and performance. The reported problems were diagnosed by medical personnel, and weekly prevalence and problem type burden were calculated for the various injury and illness types. Results: A total of 219 health problems were registered during the project period, which lasted a total of 2.2 years. 140 cases of illnesses, 57 cases of overuse injuries, and 22 cases of acute injuries resulted in 406, 81, and 62 days lost, respectively. The total of 549 days lost corresponded to 15.8 days lost per athlete per year due to injuries and illnesses. The most frequent illnesses were respiratory and gastrointestinal illnesses. The knee and the lumbosacral region were the most frequent areas for overuse injuries. The head, hands, and lower leg were the most frequent areas for acute injuries. Conclusion: The most frequent illnesses and injuries as described in this project are important to prevent. Further studies with a larger group of athletes from different countries should be conducted in order to acquire a more nuanced picture of injuries and illnesses that occur in long-track speed skating. New insight and expanded knowledge will benefit both athletes and medical personnel working with long-track speed skating. A working knowledge of speed skating biomechanics and injury mechanisms may help clinicians optimize the management of these injuries. This project represents a beginning in the prevention of illnesses and injuries in long-track speed skating.