Are Fast-Bowlers Prone to Back Injuries? Prevalence of Lumbar Spine Injuries in Fast-Bowlers: Review of MRI-Based Studies

Exploring Injury Profiles in Non-elite Cricketers: Harnessing Online Surveys for Effective Assessment

Background

An increase in the on-field intensity in modern cricket, results in an increased number of player injuries. Integration and easy access to professional physiotherapy, technology, rehab protocols, and mental/physical conditioning aid in early return to sports in the injured; however, at the grassroots, these facilities may not be available with untrained support staff and limited funds. Injuries can go unnoticed and, therefore, there is a need for an easy process of identification and documentation of such injuries. We devised a questionnaire-based survey to evaluate its effectiveness at the junior level of professional cricket.

Materials and Methods

An Online self-administered questionnaire was prepared and the link was given to active Union Territory Cricket Academy (UTCA), Chandigarh, cricketers of any gender between 15 and 35 years of age, through different online platforms like WhatsApp, Telegram and emails, for the submission of their responses.

Results

The questionnaire was administered to 98 participants out of which 77 participants' responses were evaluated (41 males and 36 females). 74/77 participants were below 30 years of age. There were 18 wicketkeepers, 33 bowlers and 26 batsmen as per their major role in the team. 37/77 cricketers (20 males, 17 females) had injuries during the previous 2 years; this included 17 bowlers, 11 batsmen and 9 wicketkeepers. The most common body part injured in the survey were fingers (12) followed by the back (7). The amount of training time lost, reported in the survey ranged from a week up to 1 year.

Conclusion

Online surveys could be the first step to accumulating data and making initial player profiles, starting even at junior levels of cricket. Further detailed evaluations may be performed after this, and coaches and administrators could potentially profile cricket injuries and identify chronic issues.

Supplementary Information

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s43465-023-00995-3.

The relationship between cricket participation, health and wellbeing: A scoping review

Summarising and synthesising the evidence on cricket health and wellbeing can help inform cricket stakeholders and navigate future research directions. The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between cricket participation, health and wellbeing at all ages and playing standards, and identify research gaps in the existing literature. A scoping review was performed from inception to March, 2020. Studies were included if they assessed a construct related to health and/or wellbeing in cricketers, available in English. 219 articles were eligible. Injury incidence per 1,000 player exposures ranged from 1.8-5.7 injuries. 48% of former cricketers experienced persistent joint pain. However, former cricketers reported greater physical activity levels and mental-components of quality of life compared to the general population. Heat injury/illness and skin cancer are concerns and require further research. Cricket participation is associated with an inherent injury risk, which may have negative implications for musculoskeletal health in later life. However, cricket participation is associated with high quality of life which can persist after retirement. Gaps in the literature include prospective studies on health and wellbeing of cricketers, female cricketers, injury prevention strategies, and the impact of cricket participation on metabolic health and lifetime physical activity.

The association between occupational loading and spine degeneration on imaging - a systematic review and meta-analysis

Background

There are inconsistencies in findings regarding the relationship of occupational loading with spinal degeneration or structural damage. Thus, a systematic review was conducted to determine the current state of knowledge on the association of occupational loading and spine degeneration on imaging.

Methods

We performed electronic searches on MEDLINE, CINAHL and EMBASE. We included cross-sectional, case control and cohort studies evaluating occupational loading as the exposure and lumbar spine structural findings on imaging as the outcomes. When possible, results were pooled.

Results

Seventeen studies were included in the review. Ten studies evaluated the association of occupational loading with disc degeneration (signal intensity), four of which were pooled into a meta-analysis. Of the 10 studies, only two did not identify a relationship between occupation loading and disc degeneration. A meta-analysis including four of the studies demonstrated an association between higher loading and degeneration for all spinal levels, with odds ratios between 1.6 and 3.3. Seven studies evaluated disc height narrowing and seven evaluate disc bulge, with six and five identifying an association of loading and with imaging findings respectively. Three studies evaluated modic changes and one identified and association with occupational load.

Conclusions

There was moderate evidence suggesting a modest association between occupational loading and disc degeneration (signal intensity), and low-quality evidence of an association between occupational loading and disc narrowing and bulging.

Injuries in Cricket

Context:

Cricket is a popular global sport that requires a combination of physical fitness, skill, and strategy. Although a noncontact sport, overuse and impact injuries are common since players engage in a wide range of physical activities, including running, throwing, batting, bowling, catching, and diving. Significant or match time-loss injuries are defined as those that either prevent a player from being fully available for selection in a major match, or during a major match, cause a player to be unable to bat, bowl, or keep wicket when required by either the rules or the team’s captain. This review describes the various region-wise injuries sustained in cricket along with their epidemiology, biomechanics, treatment, and prevention.

Evidence Acquisition:

Data were collected from peer-reviewed articles (obtained via PubMed search) published through November 2016 that involved the medical, biomechanical, and epidemiological aspects of cricket injuries.

Study Design:

Clinical review.

Level of Evidence:

Level 4.

Results:

Cricket was one of the first sports to publish recommended methods for injury surveillance in 2005 from England, South Africa, Australia, the West Indies, and India. While the incidence of injuries is about the same, the prevalence of injuries has increased due to game format changes, increasing number of matches played, and decreased rest between matches. Bowling (41.3%), fielding, and wicket keeping (28.6%) account for most injuries. Acute injuries are most common (64%-76%), followed by acute-on-chronic (16%-22.8%) and chronic ones (8%-22%). The most common modern-day cricket injury is hamstring strain, and the most severe is lumbar stress fracture in young fast bowlers.

Conclusion:

With improved understanding of the scientific and medical aspects of cricket, along with advances in surgical and nonsurgical treatment techniques, the time to return to play has shortened considerably. While the prevalence of cricket injuries has increased, their severity has decreased over the past decades.