Number of Months of Baseball in the Previous Year and Preseason Olecranon Tenderness: Risk Factors for Shoulder and Elbow Injuries in High-School Baseball Players.

OBJECTIVE

To identify risk factors for shoulder and elbow injuries in high-school baseball position players and pitchers in the preseason history and physical examination.

DESIGN

Retrospective cohort study.

SETTING

Community high-school baseball.

PARTICIPANTS

Three hundred seventy-one male baseball players' mean age 15.0 ± 1.8 years.

OUTCOME MEASURES

A preseason history and physical examination was performed on all athletes. Injury information was collected by weekly self-report and athletic trainer injury logs throughout the season. Comparisons between injured and noninjured players were performed using t tests and χ 2 analyses. Binary logistic regression models were developed to identify risk factors for injury.

RESULTS

Seventy-six injuries were recorded over the season. In univariate analysis, the injured group had greater months of baseball participation ( P = 0.007) and shoulder visual analog scale for the past year ( P = 0.003). The injured group also had more olecranon tenderness ( P < 0.0001, odds ratio [OR] 2.9) and decreased elbow arc of motion. All other factors were not significantly different ( P > 0.05). In multivariable logistic regression, months per year of baseball participation was the only factor significantly associated with injuries ( P = 0.010, OR = 1.21).

CONCLUSIONS

Baseball players who developed arm injuries during a season were more likely to play more months of baseball and report shoulder pain in the previous year. The presence of preseason olecranon tenderness was associated with nearly triple the risk of injury during the season. Every additional month of baseball participation in the previous year was associated with a 1.2× increased odds of injury. The presence of glenohumeral internal rotation deficit was not a predictor of injury.