Epidemiology of Injuries in United States High School Track and Field Running Events from 2008 to 2019

Thursday, October 23, 2025

12:45 PM - 2:15 PM MT

Location: Kiosk 8

Poster Presenter(s)

Jennifer Su, MD (she/her/hers)

Resident Physician
Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital/Harvard Medical School
Boston, Massachusetts

Co-Author(s)

Raymond Guo, MD

Resident Physician
MassGeneral Brigham/Spaulding Rehabilitation/Harvard Medical School PM&R Program
Plano, Texas
Dylan B. Combs, MD

Resident Physician
MassGeneral Brigham/Spaulding Rehabilitation/Harvard Medical School PM&R Program
Charlestown, Massachusetts
HR

Hye Chang Rhim, MD

Sports Medicine Fellow
Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital/Harvard Medical School PM&R Program
Charlestown, Massachusetts
TA

Toqa Afifi, MD (she/her/hers)

Fellow
Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai
Charlestown, Massachusetts
SK

Sydney C. Karnovsky, MD

Fellow Physician
Mass General Brigham
Brookline, Massachusetts
XP

Xiaoyu Pan, MD, PhD, MPH

Research Instructor
University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center
Dallas, Texas
MR

Mitchell J. Rauh, MPH, PhD, PT

Professor/School of Physical Therapy Director
San Diego State University
San Diego, California
AT

Adam S. Tenforde, MD

Associate Professor, Harvard Medical School
Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital
Milton, Massachusetts

Disclosure(s):

Jennifer Su, MD: No financial relationships to disclose

Raymond Guo, MD: No financial relationships to disclose

Dylan B. Combs, MD: No financial relationships to disclose

Toqa Afifi, MD: No financial relationships to disclose

Adam S. Tenforde, MD: No relevant disclosure to display

Background and/or Objectives: This descriptive epidemiological study aims to investigate the injury rates and patterns associated with high school track and field running events using data from a longitudinal national sports injury surveillance system in United States high schools.

Design: Data was obtained from the National High School Sports-Related Injury Surveillance System, High School Reporting Information Online from 2008 to 2019. Through this system, athletic trainers reported weekly injury and athletic exposure (AE) data. An AE was defined as one athlete's participation in one practice or competition. Data were analyzed for hurdles, sprints, and middle/long distance running events.

Setting : United States high schools.

Participants : High school athletes participating in track and field running events.

Interventions: N/A.

Main Outcome Measures: Injury number, types, locations, and athlete demographics were analyzed across various track and field events.

Results: A total of 2,629 injuries occurred during 5,486,279 AEs. Injury rates standardized to AE were higher in competition than in practice (RR = 2.13, 95% CI: 1.96-2.31). Injury rates were higher for girls in practice (RR = 1.56, 95% CI: 1.41-1.73), while boys had higher injury rates in competition (RR = 3.03, 95% CI: 2.68-3.41). Injuries were most commonly located in the thigh (35.1%) and leg (19.8%). The most frequent injury type was muscle strain (42.2%). Recurrent injuries comprised a larger proportion of chronic injuries compared to new injuries (IPR = 1.44, 95% CI: 1.28-1.62). Sprints had the highest number of injuries (n = 1,507), followed by middle/long distance (n = 712) and hurdles (n = 391). Concussions were most common in hurdles, tendonitis in middle/long distance running, and avulsions in sprints.

Conclusions: Injury types varied by event, highlighting the need for injury prevention strategies tailored to the specific demands of each event. This study adds to the limited body of epidemiological research on track and field running injuries among high school athletes from 2008 to 2019.