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Caravel Undergraduate Research Journal

Abstract

There has been an increase in the media attention surrounding retired National Football League players and the lasting effects from previous injuries.  With more than 20 million children under the age of 17 participating in competitive sports, the attention in the lasting effects of injuries in professional players has trickled down to the youth level.  Of the approximately 20 million children participating in competitive sports, the largest portion of the participants is playing youth football.  The University of South Carolina Athletic Training Department is partaking in a multisite research study conducted by the Datalys Center to track the injuries of two different types of youth football leagues in the Midlands area.  One of the leagues is an age-weight league, meaning if an athlete is within a certain age and weight range then they can play in a specific league.  The other is an age-only league, meaning that any athlete within an age range can play in this league, regardless of weight.  Graduate athletic trainers are assigned to assist the two football leagues by offering emergency response services and injury diagnostics.  The data collected are compiled into a database and are going to be synthesized to find trends amongst the leagues.  Here we examine the frequency, mechanism and location of injuries sustained during practices and games. The most prominent injury for both the age-weight and the age-only league was contusions. Most players from both leagues returned to play during the same session in which they were injured (68% and 54%, respectively). In the future, this study will be expanded to other sports and leagues across the Midlands area to allow comparisons between different sports.

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