The Epidemiology of Hip/Groin Injuries in National Collegiate Athletic Association Men’s and Women’s Ice Hockey

Abstract

Background: There is limited research regarding the epidemiology of hip/groin injuries in ice hockey, the majority of which is restricted to time-loss injuries only. Purpose: To describe the epidemiology of hip/groin injuries in collegiate men’s and women’s ice hockey from 2009-2010 through 2014-2015. Study Design: Descriptive epidemiology study. Methods: Hip/groin injury data from the National Collegiate Athletic Association Injury Surveillance Program (NCAA-ISP) during the 2009-2010 through 2014-2015 seasons were analyzed. Injury rates, rate ratios (RRs), and injury proportion ratios (IPRs) were reported with 95% confidence intervals (CIs). Results: During the 2009-2010 through 2014-2015 seasons, 421 and 114 hip/groin injuries were reported in men’s and women’s ice hockey, respectively, leading to injury rates of 1.03 and 0.78 per 1000 athlete-exposures (AEs), respectively. The hip/groin injury rate was greater in men than in women (RR, 1.32; 95% CI, 1.08-1.63). In addition, 55.6% and 71.1% of hip/groin injuries in men’s and women’s ice hockey, respectively, were non–time loss (NTL) injuries (ie, resulted in participation restriction time <24 hours); 7.6% and 0.9%, respectively, were severe (ie, resulted in participation restriction time >3 weeks). The proportion of hip/groin injuries that were NTL injuries was greater in women than in men (IPR, 1.28; 95% CI, 1.11-1.48). Conversely, the proportion of hip/groin injuries that were severe was greater in men than in women (IPR, 8.67; 95% CI, 1.20-62.73). The most common hip/groin injury diagnosis was strain (men, 67.2%; women, 76.3%). Also, 12 (2.9%) and 3 (2.6%) cases of hip impingement were noted in men’s and women’s ice hockey, respectively. Conclusion: Hip/groin injury rates were greater in men’s than in women’s ice hockey. Time loss varied between sexes, with men sustaining more injuries with time loss over 3 weeks. Despite increasing concerns of femoroacetabular impingement in ice hockey players, few cases of hip impingement were reported in this dataset.