Desai P, Jungmalm J, Börjesson M, Karlsson J, Grau S. Effectiveness of an 18-week general strength and foam-rolling intervention on running-related injuries in recreational runners.
Scand J Med Sci Sports 2023;
33:766-775. [PMID:
36630577 DOI:
10.1111/sms.14313]
[Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/14/2022] [Revised: 12/21/2022] [Accepted: 01/05/2023] [Indexed: 01/13/2023]
Abstract
RATIONALE
More research is needed to uncover the effectiveness of combined strength and foam-rolling interventions to prevent running-related injuries.
OBJECTIVES
To evaluate effectiveness of an 18-week general strength and foam-rolling intervention on the incidence of running-related injuries.
METHOD
This is an 18-week observational comparative study. A total of 433 recreational runners participated (n = 203 female). The intervention group (n = 228) performed general strength and foam-rolling exercises twice weekly for 18 weeks, the control group (n = 205) maintained their regular training habits. Running volume and running-related pain were reported weekly. Secondary analyses were performed on the subgroups of the intervention group based on compliance; low compliance (n = 100), intermediate compliance (n = 63), and high compliance (n = 65). Cumulative incidence proportions were calculated and time-to-event statistics were performed to compare survival times between groups. Univariate cox proportional hazards ratio was calculated to estimate the risk of running-related injuries at 18 weeks.
RESULTS
A total of 100 running-related injuries were sustained. The cumulative incidence proportion for the control and intervention groups was 27.1% (95% CI: 21.4-33.9) and 23.0% (95% CI: 17.8-29.4), respectively. No statistically significant difference was found between the overall intervention group and control group (log-rank p = 0.31). A significant difference existed between the high-compliance subgroup and the control group (log-rank p = 0.00). Highly compliant runners were 85% less likely (hazard rate ratio = 0.15; 95% CI: 0.05-0.46) to sustain an injury during the study compared with controls.
CONCLUSION
Recreational runners highly compliant with the intervention were 85% less likely and took on average 57 days longer to sustain a running-related injury when compared with controls, with a cumulative incidence proportion of 4.6% after 18 weeks.
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