Injury and illness epidemiology at a summer sport-camp program, 2008 through 2011

University-sponsored summer sport camps often employ athletic trainers; however, there is a dearth of epidemiologic studies describing the injury and illness experience of sport-camp participants to guide clinicians.

To describe the injury and illness experience of youth participants at a university-sponsored summer sport-camp program during a 4-year period.

Descriptive epidemiology study.

A National Collegiate Athletic Association Division I university that sponsored 76 to 81 camps for 28 sports each summer.

A total of 44, 499 camp participants enrolled during the 4 years. Male and female participants ranged in age from 10 to 17 years and in athletic skill from novice to elite.

Data from handwritten injury and illness log books, maintained by sports health care personnel, were accessed retrospectively, entered into an electronic spreadsheet, and coded. Data were applied to the National Athletic Injury/Illness Reporting System. Participant-personnel contacts, defined as any instance when a participant sought health care services from personnel, were calculated per 100 participants. Injury and illness rates were calculated per 10 ,000 exposures, measured in participant-days. The distribution of injury and illness conditions and affected body regions were calculated.

There were 11 ,735 contacts, for an overall rate of 26 per 100 participants, and 4949 injuries and illnesses, for a rate of 1 per 10, 000 participant-days. Participants at single-sex camps were less likely to sustain injuries and illnesses than participants at coeducational camps (rate ratio [RR] = 0.49; 95% confidence interval = 0.45, 0. 35; P < .001, and RR = 0.47; 95% confidence interval = 0.43, 0.51; P < .001, respectively). The lower extremity was injured most frequently (27.9%). Most injury and illness conditions were dermatologic (37.1%).

The contact and injury and illness differences observed among sports and between sexes demonstrated potential differences in the sports health care needs of camp participants. These data can be used to make evidence-based clinical decisions, such as determining injury-prevention strategies and sports health care staffing needs.