2010, Volume 6, Issue 3

Incidence of injuries to the lower limbs joints in kung fu athletes



Paula Sousa1, Marcelo Marquezi2, Rafael Uliani3, Lucas Duarte3

1Laboratory of Physical Education and Physiotherapy (LAPEFFI), University City of São Paulo (UNICID), São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil
2Department of Physical Education, University City of São Paulo (UNICID), São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil
3Physical Education and Sports School, University of São Paulo (USP), São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil


Author for correspondence: Marcelo Marquezi; Department of Physical Education, University City of São Paulo (UNICID), São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil; email: mlmqz[at]usp.br


Full text

Abstract

Background and Study Aim: This study evaluated the influence of competitive practice and training aspects on incidence of injuries to the lower limbs joints in formalized (taolu) and combat (sanshou) kung fu athletes.
Material and Methods: One hundred and twenty-seven kung fu athletes (taolu, n = 82; sanshou, n = 45) were interviewed about kung fu practice (practice time, competition time and competition level), training volume (days of training per week and hours per training session) and injury profiles (incidence and type). Continuous variables were compared by non-parametric Kolmogorov-Smirnov test (disciplines and competition levels as grouping variables). The effects of categorical variables (kung fu practice) on injury profiles were analyzed using the Pearson's chi-square test. The level of significance was set at p<0.05.
Results: Our data exhibited large frequency of injury reports (70.1%) and significantly differences on injury profiles between disciplines and competition levels. Taolu athletes, despite the lower practice/competition time (–51.5 and –41.8%, respectively), presented frequency of injury reports twofold greater, longer daily training volume (23.3%) and higher incidence of lower limbs joints injuries than sanshou athletes (35.4% and 11.8%, respectively).
Conclusions: Our results suggest a link between injury profiles (incidence and type) and specific characteristics of kung fu disciplines.


Key words: incidence of injuries, kung fu, lower limbs joints


Cite this article as:

AMA:

Sousa P, Marquezi M, Uliani R et al. Incidence of injuries to the lower limbs joints in kung fu athletes. ARCH BUDO. 2010;6(3)

APA:

Sousa, P., Marquezi, M., Uliani, R., & Duarte, L. (2010). Incidence of injuries to the lower limbs joints in kung fu athletes. ARCH BUDO, 6(3)

Chicago:

Sousa, Paula, Marquezi Marcelo, Uliani Rafael, Duarte Lucas. 2010. "Incidence of injuries to the lower limbs joints in kung fu athletes". ARCH BUDO 6 (3)

Harvard:

Sousa, P., Marquezi, M., Uliani, R., and Duarte, L. (2010). Incidence of injuries to the lower limbs joints in kung fu athletes. ARCH BUDO, 6(3)

MLA:

Sousa, Paula et al. "Incidence of injuries to the lower limbs joints in kung fu athletes." ARCH BUDO, vol. 6, no. 3, 2010

Vancouver:

Sousa P, Marquezi M, Uliani R et al. Incidence of injuries to the lower limbs joints in kung fu athletes. ARCH BUDO 2010; 6(3)