Injury Risk Is Increased by Changes in Perceived Recovery of Team Sport Players.

OBJECTIVE

The aim of this study is to investigate if changes in perceived stress and recovery over the course of a season are risk factors for acute and overuse injuries.

DESIGN

A prospective nonexperimental cohort design.

SETTING

Data were gathered at the SportsFieldLab Groningen and at the facilities of the participating teams.

PARTICIPANTS

Eighty-six male and female basketball, volleyball, and korfball players aged 21.9 ± 3.5 years.

INTERVENTIONS

In this 10-month observational study, the independent variables are the changes in perceived stress and recovery.

MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES

The Recovery-Stress Questionnaire for Athletes (RESTQ-Sport) was filled out every 3 weeks throughout the season to assess changes in perceived stress and recovery. Acute and overuse injuries were registered by the teams' physical therapists. Odds ratios and 95% confidence intervals were calculated.

RESULTS

During one season, 66 acute and 62 overuse injuries were registered. Multinomial regression analysis showed that perceived General Recovery, shown in the scales Social Recovery and General Well-Being, decreased in the 6-week period before an acute injury (OR 0.59 and 0.61, respectively, P ≤ 0.05) compared with healthy periods. Risk of overuse injuries increased when perceived Sport Recovery, shown in the Personal Accomplishment scale, decreased in the 3-week period before the injury (OR 0.59, P ≤ 0.05) compared with healthy periods.

CONCLUSIONS

Therefore, decreased perceived recovery can indicate an increased injury risk. General Recovery affects acute injury risk and Sport Recovery affects the risk of an overuse injury. Monitoring perceived recovery over the course of a season could give guidance for recovery enhancing practices to prevent injuries.