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C W Fuller

Publications and source records attributed to C W Fuller.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2006

Consensus statement on injury definitions and data collection procedures in studies of football (soccer) injuries.

Variations in definitions and methodologies have created differences in the results and conclusions obtained from studies of football injuries; this has made inter-study comparisons difficult. An Injury Consensus Group was established under the auspices of FIFA Medical Assessment and Research Centre. Using a nominal group consensus model approach, a working document that identified the key issues related to definitions, methodology and implementation was discussed by members of the group during a 2-day meeting. Following this meeting, iterative draft statements were prepared and circulated to members of the group for comment before the final consensus statement was produced. Definitions of injury, recurrent injury, severity and training and match exposures in football together with criteria for classifying injuries in terms of location, type, diagnosis and causation are proposed. Proforma for recording players' baseline information, injuries and training and match exposures are presented. Recommendations are made on how the incidence of match and training injuries should be reported and a checklist of issues and information that should be included in published reports of studies of football injuries is presented. The definitions and methodology proposed in the consensus statement will ensure that consistent and comparable results will be obtained from studies of football injuries.

Athletic Injuries↗
PubMed2006

Quantifying the functional rehabilitation of injured football players.

OBJECTIVE: To determine whether quantified, auditable records of functional rehabilitation can be generated using subjective assessments of players' performance in fitness tests routinely used in professional football. METHOD: Ten sequential test elements grouped into three phases (fitness, ball and match skills, match pace football) were used to monitor players' functional recovery from injury. Physiotherapists subjectively assessed players' performance in each test element using a six point subjective rating scale. Satisfactory performance in each element of the assessment programme added 10% to the injured player's recovery score. Daily recovery scores for injured players were recorded against the time spent in functional rehabilitation. RESULTS: Rehabilitation data for 118 injuries sustained by 55 players over two seasons were recorded. The average time in functional rehabilitation depended on the time spent in pre-functional rehabilitation and the nature and location of injury. Benchmark functional rehabilitation curves (y = mln(x) + c) were developed for thigh (n = 15) and lower leg (n = 8) muscle strains and knee (n = 7) and ankle (n = 9) ligament sprains (R(2) = 0.95-0.98). CONCLUSIONS: A structured, quantified rehabilitation programme based on routine fitness and skills exercises and a graded subjective assessment of performance provides an auditable record of a player's functional recovery from a range of lower limb injuries and a transparent exit point from rehabilitation. The proposed method provides a permanent record of the functional rehabilitation of players' injuries and evidence based data to support management's return to play decisions.

Adult↗
PubMed2006

Consensus statement on injury definitions and data collection procedures in studies of football (soccer) injuries.

Variations in definitions and methodologies have created differences in the results and conclusions obtained from studies of football (soccer) injuries, making interstudy comparisons difficult. Therefore an Injury Consensus Group was established under the auspices of Fédération Internationale de Football Association Medical Assessment and Research Centre. A nominal group consensus model approach was used. A working document on definitions, methodology, and implementation was discussed by the group. Iterative draft statements were prepared and circulated to members of the group for comment before the final consensus statement was produced. Definitions of injury, recurrent injury, severity, and training and match exposures in football together with criteria for classifying injuries in terms of location, type, diagnosis, and causation are proposed. Proforma for recording players' baseline information, injuries, and training and match exposures are presented. Recommendations are made on how the incidence of match and training injuries should be reported and a checklist of issues and information that should be included in published reports of studies of football injuries is presented.

Athletic Injuries↗
PubMed2005

A prospective study of injuries and training amongst the England 2003 Rugby World Cup squad.

OBJECTIVES: To assess the aetiology, incidence, severity, and causes of injuries to England rugby union players during preparation for and participation in the 2003 Rugby World Cup. METHOD: A 63 week prospective design was employed to study the training practices and injuries of England rugby players. The team physician reported all training and match injuries and provided details of the location, diagnosis, severity, and mechanism of each injury. The team fitness coach reported details of the number and duration of training sessions and the time dedicated to rugby and conditioning training. Players' stature, body mass, and skinfolds were measured at the beginning and end of the study period. RESULTS: The overall incidence of injury was 17 injuries/1000 h of exposure (match: 218 injuries/1000 h; training: 6.1 injuries/1000 h). The major locations of injuries were the lower (60%) and upper (17%) limbs and the most common diagnoses were muscle and tendon (50%) and joint (non-bone) and ligament (41%) injuries. The highest incidences of match injuries occurred whilst being tackled (50 injuries/1000 h) and in a ruck or maul (35 injuries/1000 h), whilst the greatest incidences of training injuries occurred during endurance running (24 injuries/1000 h) and contact activities (20 injuries/1000 h). Players' average body mass increased and skinfold measurement decreased significantly over the study period. CONCLUSIONS: The incidence of match injuries at international level was found to be higher than previously reported. The tackle, ruck, and maul elements of match play and the endurance running and contact elements of training presented the highest risk of injury for all players.

Anthropometry↗
PubMed2005

Epidemiology of injuries in English professional rugby union: part 1 match injuries.

OBJECTIVES: To undertake a detailed, large scale epidemiological study of match injuries sustained by professional rugby union players in order to define their incidence, nature, severity, and causes. METHODS: A two season prospective design was used to study match injuries associated with 546 rugby union players at 12 English Premiership clubs. Team clinicians reported all match injuries on a weekly basis and provided details of the location, diagnosis, severity, and mechanism of each injury. Match exposures for individual players were recorded on a weekly basis. Loss of time from training and match play was used as the definition of an injury. RESULTS: The overall incidence of injury was 91 injuries/1000 player-hours, and each injury resulted on average in 18 days lost time. Recurrences, which accounted for 18% of injuries, were significantly more severe (27 days) than new injuries (16 days). Thigh haematomas were the most common injury for forwards and backs, but anterior cruciate ligament injuries for forwards and hamstring injuries for backs caused the greatest number of days absence. Contact mechanisms accounted for 72% of injuries, but foul play was only implicated in 6% of injuries. The ruck and maul elements of the game caused most injuries to forwards, and being tackled caused most injuries to backs. The hooker and outside centre were the playing positions at greatest risk of injury. CONCLUSIONS: On average, a club will have 18% of their players unavailable for selection as a consequence of match injuries.

Adult↗
PubMed2005

Epidemiology of injuries in English professional rugby union: part 2 training Injuries.

OBJECTIVES: To undertake a detailed epidemiological study of training injuries sustained by professional rugby union players in order to define their incidence, nature, severity, and causes. METHODS: A two season prospective design was used to study training injuries associated with 502 rugby union players at 11 English Premiership clubs. Team clinicians reported all training injuries on a weekly basis and provided details of the location, diagnosis, severity, and mechanism of each injury. Training exposures for individual players were recorded on a weekly basis. Loss of time from training and match play was used as the definition of an injury. RESULTS: The overall incidence of injury was 2.0 per 1000 player-hours, and each injury resulted on average in 24 days lost time. Recurrences, which accounted for 19% of injuries, were more severe (35 days) than new injuries (21 days). Twenty two per cent of all training occurred during the preseason but 34% of all injuries were sustained in this period. Hamstring, calf, hip flexor/quadriceps, and adductor muscle injuries were the most common for backs, whereas hamstring, lateral ankle ligament, and lumbar disc/nerve root injuries predominated for forwards. Lumbar disc/nerve root, shoulder dislocation/instability, and hamstring muscle injuries for forwards and hamstring muscle and anterior cruciate ligament injuries for backs caused the greatest number of days absence. Running was the predominant cause of injury for both forwards and backs, although the overall incidence and severity of injuries sustained during skills training were significantly greater than those sustained during conditioning training. CONCLUSIONS: On average, a club will have 5% of their players unavailable for selection as a consequence of training injuries.

Adult↗
PubMed2005

A six year prospective study of the incidence and causes of head and neck injuries in international football.

OBJECTIVE: To identify those risk factors that have the greatest impact on the incidence of head and neck injuries in international football. METHOD: A case-control study of players sustaining head and neck injuries during 20 FIFA tournaments (men and women) from 1998 to 2004. Video recordings of incidents were used to identify a range of parameters associated with the incidents. Team physicians provided medical reports describing the nature of each injury. chi2 tests (p< or =0.01) and 95% confidence intervals were used to assess differences in distribution and incidence of injury, respectively. RESULTS: In total, 248 head and neck injuries were recorded of which 163 were identified and analysed on video sequences. The commonest injuries were contusions (53%), lacerations (20%), and concussions (11%). The incidence of all head and neck injuries was 12.5/1000 player hours (men 12.8, women 11.5) and 3.7 for lost-time injuries (men 3.5, women 4.1). The commonest causes of injury involved aerial challenges (55%) and the use of the upper extremity (33%) or head (30%). The unfair use of the upper extremity was significantly more likely to cause an injury than any other player action. Only one injury (a neck muscle strain) occurred as a result of heading the ball throughout the 20 tournaments equivalent to 0.05 injuries/1000 player hours. CONCLUSIONS: Players' actions most likely to cause a head or neck injury were the use of the upper extremity or the head but in the majority of cases these challenges were deemed to be fair and within the laws of the game.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2002

Perceptions of retired professional soccer players about the provision of support services before and after retirement.

OBJECTIVE: To determine the views of retired players about the provision of support services in English professional soccer before and after retirement and to assess the impact of career ending injury on these views. METHOD: An anonymous self administered questionnaire was distributed to 500 former players registered with the English Professional Footballers' Association. The questions asked about personal details, current medical status, reasons for retirement, perceptions of the provision and quality of support services, and use of prophylactic treatments while injured. RESULTS: Of the 500 questionnaires distributed, 185 (37%) were returned. The Professional Footballers' Association provided significantly (p<0.001) more help and advice to retired players on medical, financial, career, and educational matters than any other organisation. Although respondents showed some satisfaction with the provision of medical support, they were significantly (p<0.001) less satisfied with the provision of sports science (23%) and education/welfare (19%) support. Respondents who had retired through injury, however, were more dissatisfied with the provision of all services. Significantly (p<0.001) more respondents agreed with the view that injuries would reduce income earning potential, contribute to medical problems, and restrict the duration of their playing career. Respondents who had been medically diagnosed with osteoarthritis were significantly more likely, at some time, to have regularly received steroid injections while injured. CONCLUSION: The results presented are consistent with other evidence that the provision of injury prevention and socioeconomic services at professional soccer clubs is inadequate. The soccer industry should therefore develop a long term strategy for managing the needs of players who are forced to retire through injury.

Adrenal Cortex Hormones↗
PubMed2002

Evaluating the level of injury in English professional football using a risk based assessment process.

OBJECTIVES: To show how epidemiological data can be presented and analysed in frequency based and risk based formats and how risk based information can simplify management decisions on injury prevention strategies in professional football. METHODS: The club physiotherapists at four English professional football clubs prospectively recorded players' injuries over the period November 1994 to May 1997. The nature, location, and mechanism of each injury and the specific numbers of days that players were unavailable to train or play as a result of injuries were recorded. The rates of injury were evaluated on a risk matrix using the number of days and the estimated costs of absence as measures of injury consequences. RESULTS: There was a significant difference in the time lost through injury as a function of injury severity (p<0.001). Slight and minor injuries accounted for 51% of all injuries but represented only 17% of the risk from injury, whereas major injuries accounted for only 12% of the number of injuries and 47% of the risk. Player to player contact injuries accounted for 39% of the risk of injury, and football specific activities accounted for 47% of the risk. The risks of acute injury in professional football were three orders of magnitude greater than those in the construction, manufacturing, and service sectors of industry. CONCLUSIONS: The risks associated with minor, moderate, and major acute injuries and osteoarthritis in lower limb joints of professional footballers were found to be unacceptable when evaluated against work based risk criteria used by the Health and Safety Executive. All stakeholders within professional football were shown to have an important contribution to make in reducing the overall level of risk to players through the provision of risk prevention strategies.

England↗
PubMed2001

Propensity for osteoarthritis and lower limb joint pain in retired professional soccer players.

OBJECTIVE: To quantify the prevalence of osteoarthritis and the severity of pain in the lower limb joints of players retired from English professional soccer. METHOD: An anonymous self administered questionnaire was distributed to 500 former players registered with the English Professional Footballers' Association. The questionnaire was designed to gather information on personal details, physical activity loading patterns, history of lower limb joint injury, and current medical condition of the lower limb joints. RESULTS: Of 500 questionnaires distributed, 185 (37%) were returned. Nearly half of the respondents (79: 47%) retired because of injury; 42% (33) were acute injuries and 58% (46) chronic injuries. Most of the acute injuries that led to early retirement were of the knee (15: 46%), followed by the ankle (7: 21%) and lower back (5: 15%). Most of the chronic injuries that led to early retirement were also of the knee (17: 37%), followed by the lower back (10: 22%) and the hip (4: 9%). Of all respondents, 32% (59) had been medically diagnosed with osteoarthritis in at least one of the lower limb joints. More respondents had been diagnosed with osteoarthritis in the knee joints than either the ankle or the hip joints. Significantly (p<0.001) more respondents reported pain in one lower extremity joint during one or more daily activities than those who did not (joint pain: 137, 80%; no joint pain: 35, 20%). CONCLUSION: The risk for professional soccer players of osteoarthritis in at least one of the lower extremity joints is very high and significantly greater than for the general population. The results support the suggestion that professional soccer players should be provided with health surveillance during their playing career.

Activities of Daily Living↗
PubMed1999

A prospective epidemiological study of injuries in four English professional football clubs.

OBJECTIVE: To define the causes of injuries to players in English professional football during competition and training. METHOD: Lost time injuries to professional and youth players were prospectively recorded by physiotherapists at four English League clubs over the period 1994 to 1997. Data recorded included information related to the injury, date and place of occurrence, type of activity, and extrinsic Playing factors. RESULTS: In all, 67% of all injuries occurred during competition. The overall injury frequency rate (IFR) was 8.5 injuries/1000 hours, with the IFR during competitions (27.7) being significantly (p < 0.01) higher than that during training (3.5). The IFRs for youth players were found to increase over the second half of the season, whereas they decreased for professional players. There were no significant differences in IFRs for professional and youth players during training. There were significantly (p < 0.01) injuries in competition in the 15 minute periods at the end of each half. Strains (41%), sprains (20%), and contusions (20%) represented the major types of injury. The thigh (23%), the ankle (17%), knee (14%), and lower leg (13%) represented the major locations of injury, with significantly (p < 0.01) more injuries to the dominant body side. Reinjury counted for 22% of all injuries. Only 12% of all injuries were caused by a breach of the rules of football, although player to player contact was involved in 41% of all injuries. CONCLUSIONS: The overall level of injury to professional footballers has been showed to be around 1000 times higher times higher than for industrial occupations generally regarded as high risk. The high level of muscle strains, in particular, indicates possible weakness in fitness training programmes and use of warming up and cooling down procedures by clubs and the need for benchmarking players' levels of fitness and performance. Increasing levels of injury to youth players as a season progresses emphasizes the importance of controlling the exposure of young players to high levels of competition.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1998

A preliminary assessment of professional footballers' awareness of injury prevention strategies.

Players from five English professional football clubs completed a questionnaire containing 52 items relating to injury prevention practices and advice received on these issues. Responses were received from 55 players, which represents a mean response of 11 (4) and a response rate of 38 (14)% from each club (means (SD)). The main deficiencies in awareness of injury prevention strategies for players were identified as: use of shin pads during training, carbohydrate intake before and after training and after matches, cool downs after training and matches, and flexibility work. These deficiencies indicate a need for wider education of players in current injury prevention strategies.

Adult↗
PubMed1998

An examination of the frequency and severity of injuries and incidents at three levels of professional football.

OBJECTIVE: To assess the risk of injury to professional footballers during European international and English Premier and First Division league matches. METHODS: Videotaped recordings of 29, 49, and 93 matches from the 1996 European Championship, 1996/1997 English Premier season and 1994 to 1997 English First Division seasons respectively were analysed. During each match, several relevant variables, including the number of fouls, injuries, time of incident, player identity, and injury mechanism, were recorded. RESULTS: Significantly more free kicks were awarded during international matches than during league matches; however, there were no significant differences between the numbers of free kicks awarded over the three First Division seasons assessed. Between 1.7 and 3.0% of fouls resulted in a player requiring treatment for injury, but only 15-28% of all injuries resulted from foul play. In all "non-foul" situations, in which injury resulted, at least 60% still involved player to player contact. No significant differences in injury frequency were observed between playing positions or match halves. CONCLUSIONS: The results equate to a total of 808 players per season from the estimated 2600 players in the four English professional football leagues sustaining a match injury that caused them to miss at least one game. The large number of underlying "non-injury" incidents is identified as the reason for this level of injury rather than a higher ratio of "injury" to "non-injury" incidents in professional football compared with other occupations.

Analysis of Variance↗
PubMed1997

Developing a health surveillance strategy for professional footballers in compliance with UK health and safety legislation.

The need for health surveillance for professional footballers has been assessed against criteria specified in UK health and safety legislation. As footballers suffer from chronic injuries under normal playing conditions, professional football clubs have a requirement to implement health surveillance programmes to protect their players. A health surveillance programme, based on benchmarking a player's fitness and addressing the issues of pre-recruitment, pre-season, during-season, post-season, and rehabilitation assessment, is proposed.

Athletic Injuries↗
PubMed1997

Thermo Sequenase DNA polymerase and T. acidophilum pyrophosphatase: new thermostable enzymes for DNA sequencing.

A combination of thermostable enzymes has been developed that produces higher quality cycle sequences. Thermo Sequenase DNA polymerase is a thermostable enzyme engineered to catalyze the incorporation of ddNTPs with an efficiency several thousandfold better than other thermostable DNA polymerases. Since the enzyme also catalyzes pyrophosphorolysis at dideoxy termini, a thermostable inorganic pyrophosphatase is needed to remove the pyrophosphate produced during sequencing reactions. Thermoplasma acidophilum inorganic pyrophosphatase (TAP) is thermostable and effective for converting pyrophosphate to orthophosphate. The use of the combination of Thermo Sequenase polymerase and TAP for cycle sequencing yields sequence data with uniform band intensities, allowing the determination of longer, more accurate sequence reads. Uniform band intensities also facilitate interpretation of sequence anomalies and the presence of mixed templates. Sequencing PCR products of DNA amplified from heterozygous diploid individuals results in signals of equal intensity from each allele.

Cloning, Molecular↗
PubMed1996

Risk assessment in professional football: an examination of accidents and incidents in the 1994 World Cup finals.

OBJECTIVE: To assess the risks to footballers' health and safety during competitive international matches, with identification of the most common causes of injury. METHODS: Videos of 44 of the 52 matches played during the 1994 World Cup finals staged in the USA were analysed. During each match, several relevant variables were recorded, including the number of fouls, injuries, treatments, times of incidents, identity of players treated or injured, and the injury mechanism. Additional information on players' injuries was obtained from the extensive media coverage of the event. RESULTS: Only 29% of injuries resulted from foul play, whereas 71% of injuries to players occurred where no foul play was adjudged by the referee to have taken place (P < 0.01). Defenders were found to be proportionately subjected to a greater risk of injury than other players (P < 0.05). Fifteen per cent of all injuries were judged to be at least moderate, resulting in the player missing at least one match. Frequency of moderate injury was 1026 injuries per 100,000 hours played. CONCLUSIONS: The major causes of injuries during international football matches were not found to be associated with foul play, as judged by the referees. However, in those cases where injuries occurred without a foul being committed, almost 50% involved player to player contact. This gives some cause for concern and is worth further investigation.

Adult↗
PubMed1996

DNA sequencing with [alpha-33P]-labeled ddNTP terminators: a new approach to DNA sequencing with Thermo Sequenase DNA polymerase.

A new approach to DNA sequencing is described. The method is based on the use of [alpha-33P]-labeled dideoxyribonucleoside triphosphate terminators and Thermo Sequenase DNA polymerase in cycle sequencing. Thermo Sequenase DNA polymerase incorporates ddNTPs as efficiently as dNTPs, allowing the use of low concentrations of these nucleotides in DNA sequencing. Because only the properly terminated chains are labeled and visualized on autoradiography of the sequencing gels, the sequence results are free of background. The intensity of DNA bands generated are remarkably uniform, which makes reading of DNA sequences easy. By staggered loading of the sequencing gel (at 2-3 hour intervals), it is possible to sequence DNA at least 450 to 500 nucleotides. Exposure time for autoradiography with [alpha-33P] labels is much shorter than with [35S] and does not substantially compromise autoradiographic resolution. Data can be obtained after only 12 hours of exposure of an X-ray film. Moreover, cycle sequencing requires very small amounts of single- or double-stranded template. Consequently, it is even possible to generate sequence data from a single bacterial colony. The details of the protocol are presented in a stepwise manner, and some important parameters to be considered for sequencing with this method are discussed.

Codon, Terminator↗