[Epidemiology of injuries in a male college indoor soccer team]

So far there are no reports on the incidence of injuries in indoor soccer and their characteristics, so we decided to find out what happens in a college team of this sport.

The physician in a team recorded the injuries that occurred during the trainings and games from April to December 2009. The number of exposure hours of players was determined. The frequencies and incidence per exposure were calculated.

A total of 62 injuries were recorded. The incidence during games was 8.97 injuries/100 hours, and during trainings 0.88 injuries/100 hours. Midfielders and defenders had the highest incidence of injuries, with 1.50 and 1.29 injuries per 100 hours of exposure, respectively. Eighty percent of the injuries involved the pelvic limbs and 11% the thoracic limbs. Sprains represented 25% of the injuries, followed by contusions and muscle injuries, with 23 and 18%, respectively. Ninety-two percent of the injuries were mild, 6.5% moderate and 1.5% severe.

There are similarities with other studies; however, it is difficult to compare the studies reported on soccer and indoor soccer with this one due to the differences in collection methods, population and participants. The strength of this study is that a single physician made the diagnosis and follow-up, care was provided immediately and all the injuries that occurred in the team were recorded. This leads to continue conducting studies on the mechanisms and causes of injuries, which may be used to implement preventive measures.