Ultimate frisbee related injury patterns: A decade long institutional experience

The primary outcome of this investigation was to describe the frequency and types of ultimate frisbee-related injuries at a single institution over an 11-year period. The secondary outcomes were to report rates of radiographic utilization and surgical intervention.

TriNetX was utilized to identify patients with ultimate-frisbee related injuries from 2010 to 2021 at a single institution. Injured body parts were recorded and further classified by type of injury. Imaging utilization, including plain radiograph, computed tomography (CT), and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) were recorded. Rate of subsequent surgery was also recorded.

A total of 187 distinct injury encounters were identified. The most common anatomic regions injured were the knee (23.5 %), shoulder (14.8 %), and ankle (12.2 %). Among knee injuries, anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) tear was the most common type of injury (20.5 %). Sprains were the most common type of injury to the shoulder (34.5 %) and the ankle (64 %). 71.1 % of patients were imaged with radiographs, 16.6 % were imaged with MRI, and 3.7 % of patients were imaged with CT. Additionally, 14.4 % of patients required surgery due to their ultimate frisbee-related injury.

As ultimate frisbee increases in popularity among the general population so does the incidence of ultimate-related injuries. Although these injuries have many similarities with those associated with other non-contact team sports, knowledge of the gameplay and commonly associated injury patterns is integral to initiating effective treatment and management of these injuries.