Education, Awareness Could Prevent Catastrophic Injuries in Wrestling

11/15/2002

From: Brian Haefs of American Orthopaedic Society for Sports Medicine, 847-292-4900, brian@aossm.org

ROSEMONT, Ill., Nov. 15 -- A new study reports that proper education, preparation, and level of awareness could have prevented some of the catastrophic wrestling injuries of recent years.

Catastrophic injury is defined by the National Center for Catastrophic Sports Injury Research (NCCSIR) as "any severe injury incurred during participation in a school/college sponsored sport." Past studies have found at the high school and college levels that the rate of injury in wrestling is second only to that in football. Because catastrophic wrestling injuries are rarely reported, there is little research on prevention.

In a study published in the November-December 2002 issue of The American Journal of Sports Medicine (AJSM), researchers analyzed demographic data from NCCSIR on patients, mechanisms of injury, diagnoses, and outcomes. The data, based on U.S. cases reported from 1981 to 1999, showed an average of about 2 direct catastrophic injuries per year.

In the 35 incidents studied, 22 athletes required at least one surgical procedure. Twenty-seven patients suffered a cervical fracture or major cervical ligament injury; 11 of these spinal cord injuries resulted in quadriplegia and 1 in paraplegia. These injuries most commonly occurred during takedown, when an athlete is lifted off the mat and lands on his head or in a position that causes excessive twisting of his neck.

The authors recommend a number of measures that can be taken to prevent or at least reduce the risk of future catastrophic injuries in wrestling: 1) strict attention to and penalty for any intentional or unintentional slams during a takedown; 2) heightened awareness by referees for any potentially dangerous holds during takedowns or the down position, when a wrestler has both hands restrained, or is lifted excessively high; and 3) continued teaching by wrestling coaches of the importance of the head-up position during takedowns, proper landing and tumbling techniques, and overall safe, legal wrestling techniques.

In a separate interview, Dr. Barry Boden, one of the researchers of this study, stated that high school and college wrestling coaches are well positioned to pursue these preventive measures. One way to communicate such measures to wrestling coaches is through pertinent organizations that govern high school and collegiate athletics, some of which are already involved in preparing rules updates and safety recommendations.

"This study is the first comprehensive review of catastrophic injuries in wrestling and hopefully will reduce the incidence of these injuries," said Dr. Boden. He concluded that, although the wrestling establishment has done a good job of emphasizing safety, closer attention should be paid to catastrophic injuries.

AJSM is a bimonthly publication of the American Orthopaedic Society for Sports Medicine, a world leader in sports medicine education, research, communication, and fellowship. Copies of this paper are available to media upon request from AOSSM Director of Communications Brian Haefs (brian@aossm.org; 847/292-4900).