Vij, Neeraj

Purpose To characterize the prevalence and incidence of in‐game hand and wrist injuries in the National Basketball Association (NBA), to determine the factors associated with an equal or greater player efficiency rating (PER), and to determine the factors associated with an equal or greater true shooting percentage (TS%) 2 years after a hand and wrist injury using a large‐scale national database of NBA players. Methods Injury data from seasons 2015‐2016 to 2020‐2021, with exclusion of the 2019‐2020 because of abbreviated play due to the coronavirus disease 2019, were extracted from a public online database, Pro Sports Transactions. Injury characteristics and NBA player demographic information were assessed using descriptive statistics. Poisson logistic regression analyses were performed to identify risk factors associated with equal or increased PER and TS% 2years after injury. Results There were 214 reported hand and wrist injuries, and of these injuries, 173 (81%) were classified as structural. The most common injury types were a strain or sprain (0.63 per 1,000 game exposures), followed by fractures (0.37 per 1,000 game exposures). Older age (relative risk [RR] 0.89; 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.84‐0.95) and more years played in the NBA were modestly associated with relative risk of having a decreased PER at 2 years after injury. Increased weight (RR 1.02; 95% CI 1‐1.05) and increased body mass index (RR 1.14; 95% CI 1.01‐1.29) were also modestly associated with having a decreased PER and TS%, respectively at 2 years after injury. Conclusions Strains/sprains and fractures are the most common hand and wrist injuries sustained by NBA players. Regardless of dominant or nondominant hand and wrist injuries, NBA players are likely to return to baseline overall player efficiency based on PER and TS% within 2 years of injury. Clinical Relevance Our study characterizes hand and wrist injuries of NBA players and provides an understanding for these injuries on player performance at 2 years.

Objectives: Injuries to the foot and ankle are more common in National Basketball Association (NBA) basketball compared to other professional sports. The goal of this study is to report the incidence and associated risk factors of foot and ankle injuries in the NBA athletes. Methods: Foot and ankle injury data from the 2015-16 through 2020-21 NBA seasons was queried and verified using a publicly available database. The truncated 2019-20 season was omitted from this study due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The primary outcome was the incidence of foot and ankle injuries, reported per 1000 game exposures (GEs). Secondary analysis was performed to identify risk factors for ankle injuries through bivariate analysis and multivariable logistic regression of player demographics, performance statistics, injury characteristics, and previous lower extremity injuries. Additionally, factors influencing the length of absence were assessed via negative binomial regression. Results: There were 728 structural foot and ankle injuries (5.34 per 1000 GEs) sustained by NBA players over 5 NBA seasons, with sprain/strain as the most common injury type (4.27 per 1000 GEs) (Table 1). The majority of ankle injury events (55%) resulted in 2-10 game absences (Table 4). The likelihood of sustaining an ankle injury was significantly associated with a greater number of games played, previous upper leg injury, and more games missed due to injury (Table 2). Increased length of absence due to ankle injury was significantly associated with greater height, minutes per game, usage rate, points per game, total rebounds per game, and a prior history of foot, ankle, and knee injuries (Table 3). Conclusions: The incidence of foot and ankle injuries was 5.34 per 1000 GEs in professional basketball players. Games played and previous history of upper leg injuries were found to be risk factors for ankle injuries. Factors associated with physiologic burden such as minutes per game and usage rate were associated with an increased severity of injury. [Table: see text][Table: see text][Table: see text][Table: see text]

Background: Ankle injuries are more common in the National Basketball Association (NBA) compared with other professional sports. Purpose/Hypothesis: The purpose of this study was to report the incidence and associated risk factors of ankle injuries in NBA athletes. It was hypothesized that factors associated with an increased physiologic burden, such as minutes per game (MPG), usage rate, and associated lower extremity injury, would be associated with increased ankle injury risk and time loss. Study Design: Descriptive epidemiology study. Methods: Ankle injury data from the 2015-2016 through 2020-2021 NBA seasons were evaluated. The truncated 2019-2020 season due to the COVID-19 pandemic was omitted. The primary outcome was the incidence of ankle injuries, reported per 1000 game-exposures (GEs). Secondary analysis was performed to identify risk factors for ankle injuries through bivariate analysis and multivariable logistic regression of player demographic characteristics, performance statistics, injury characteristics, and previous lower extremity injuries. Factors influencing the time loss after injury were assessed via a negative binomial regression analysis. Results: A total of 554 ankle injuries (4.06 injuries per 1000 GEs) were sustained by NBA players over 5 NBA seasons, with sprain/strain the most common injury type (3.71 injuries per 1000 GEs). The majority of ankle injury events (55%) resulted in 2 to 10 game absences. The likelihood of sustaining an ankle injury was significantly associated with a greater number of games played ( P = .029) and previous injury to the hip, hamstring, or quadriceps ( P = .004). Increased length of absence due to ankle injury was associated with greater height ( P = .019), MPG ( P < .001), usage rate ( P = .025), points per game ( P = .011), and a prior history of foot ( P = .003), ankle ( P < .001), and knee injuries ( P < .001). Conclusion: The incidence of ankle injuries was 4.06 per 1000 GEs in professional basketball players. Games played and prior history of hip, hamstring, or quadriceps injuries were found to be risk factors for ankle injuries. Factors associated with physiologic burden such as MPG and usage rate were associated with an increased time loss after injury.