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Epidemiology of football injuries of the German Bundesliga: a media-based, prospective analysis over 7 consecutive seasons
Author: Dele Bolade Samson Babalola


Background

This study describes the implementation of a standardised, prospective injury database covering the entire 1st male German football league (“Bundesliga”) based on publicly available media data. For the first time, various media sources were used simultaneously as the external validity of media-generated data was low in the past compared to data obtained by way of the “gold standard”, i.e. by the teams’ medical staffs.

Methods

The study covers 7 consecutive seasons (2014/15–2020/21). The primary data source was the online version of the sport-specific journal “kicker Sportmagazin™” complemented by further publicly available media data. Injury data collection followed the Fuller consensus statement on football injury studies.

Results

During the 7 seasons, 6653 injuries occurred, thereof 3821 in training and 2832 in matches. The injury incidence rates (IRs) per 1000 football hours were 5.5 [95% CI 5.3–5.6], 25.9 [25.0–26.9] per 1000 match, and 3.4 [3.3–3.6] per 1000 training hours. Twenty-four per cent of the injuries (n = 1569, IR 1.3 [1.2–1.4]) affected the thigh, 15% (n = 1023, IR 0.8 [0.8–0.9]) the knee, and 13% (n = 856, IR 0.7 [0.7–0.8]) the ankle. Muscle/tendon injuries contributed 49% (n = 3288, IR 2.7 [2.6–2.8]), joint/ligament injuries 17% (n = 1152, IR 0.9 [0.9–1.0]), and contusions 13% (n = 855, IR 0.7 [0.7–0.8]). Compared to studies using injury reports from the clubs’ medical staff, media data revealed similar proportional distributions of the injuries, but the IRs tended towards the lower end. Obtaining specific locations or diagnosis especially with regard to minor injuries is difficult.

Conclusions

Media data are convenient for investigating the quantity of injuries of an entire league, for identifying injuries for further subanalysis, and for analysing complex injuries. Future studies will focus on the identification of inter- and intraseasonal trends, players' individual injury histories, and risk factors for subsequent injuries. Furthermore, these data will be used in a complex system approach for developing a clinical decision support system, e.g. for return to play decisions.

Modeling the impact of players’ workload on the injury‐burden of English Premier League football clubs
Author : Dele Bolade Samson Babalola

The loss of players through injury is known to affect team performance in many sports; it is important, therefore, for professional teams to be able to quantify the likely injury‐burden that will be encountered throughout a season.

A kinetic model, based on the rates at which match and training injuries are sustained and resolved, a team's squad size and the 2017/2018 season fixture schedule for teams competing in the English Premier League, is used to produce daily forecasts of injury‐burden experienced by a typical team.

The incidences and median severities of match (incidence: 26.9 injuries/1000 player‐match hours, 95% CI: 21.5‐33.7; severity: 17.5 days, 95% CI: 13.0‐28.0) and training (incidence: 4.3 injuries/1000 player‐training hours, 95% CI: 3.4‐5.5; severity: 14.0 days, 95% CI: 11.0‐22.0) injuries were determined using data collected from four English Premier League football clubs during the 2016/2017 season.

Time‐to‐recovery curves for the match and training injuries sustained in the Premier League closely matched the time‐to‐recovery curves predicted by the kinetic model used in this study.

The kinetic model predicted higher match and lower training injury burdens and a higher overall injury burden for successful teams competing in both national and European club competitions compared to teams competing only in national competitions.

The model also showed that, in terms of injury‐burden, there were no benefits in adopting a 4‐week mid‐season break during the season: reducing the number of clubs competing in the Premier League would, however, reduce the overall injury burden during a season.

Estimation of injury costs: financial damage of English Premier League teams’ underachievement due to injuries.
Author: Dele Bolade Samson Babalola

Background

In individual sports, the effect that injuries have on an athlete’s performance, success and financial profit is implicit. In contrast, the effect of a single player’s injury or one player’s absence in team sports is much more difficult to quantify, both from the performance perspective and the financial perspective.

Objectives

In this study, we attempted to estimate the effect of injuries on the performance of football teams from the English Premier League (EPL), and the financial implications derived from this effect.

Methods

Our analysis is based on data regarding game results, injuries and estimations of the players’ financial value for the 2012–2013 through the 2016–2017 seasons.

Results

We found a statistically significant relationship (r=−0.46, 95% CI −0.6 to −0.28, p=0.001) between the number of days out due to injuries suffered by team members during a season and the place difference between their actual and expected finish in the EPL table (according to overall player value). Moreover, we can interpolate that approximately 136 days out due to injury causes a team the loss of one league point, and that approximately 271 days out due to injury costs a team one place in the table.

This interpolation formula is used as a heuristic model, and given the relationship specified above accounts for a significant portion of the variance in league placement (21%), the remaining variance is related to other factors. Calculating the costs of wage bills and prize money, we estimate that an EPL team loses an average of £45 million sterling due to injury-related decrement in performance per season.

Conclusion

Professional football clubs have a strong economic incentive to invest in injury prevention and rehabilitation programmes.

Uncertainty of outcome, team quality or star players? What drives TV audience demand for UEFA Champions League football?

Author : Dele Bolade Samson Babalola


Research Question

This is the first article to empirically examine what drives TV audience demand for the UEFA Champions League (UCL) in major European markets. It then asks: How well does the tournament structure meet the preferences of TV viewers?

Research Methods

The article analyses the UCL from 2013/14–2018/19, considering TV viewing figures for all televised games from the group stages through to the finals in six nations – France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain and the UK. It then analyses match data in the UCL since its most recent tournament restructure in 2003/04, along with Ba…
[8:45 AM, 6/4/2024] Egbon Wale Nheyo: Risk factors for hamstring muscle injury in male elite football: medical expert experience and conclusions from 15 European Champions League clubs
Author : Dele Bolade Samson Babalola

Objectives

To describe the perceived importance of suggested hamstring injury risk factors according to chief medical officers (CMOs) of European male professional football clubs.

A secondary objective was to compare if these perceptions differed between teams with a lower-than-average hamstring injury burden and teams with a higher than average hamstring injury burden.

Methods

First, CMOs of 15 European professional male football clubs were asked to suggest risk factors for hamstring injury in their club. The perceived importance of the suggested risk factors was then rated by all participants on a 5-graded Likert scale. Participating teams were divided in two groups depending on their hamstring injury burden during the 2019/2020 and 2020/2021 seasons.

The LOW group consisted of seven teams that had a lower than average hamstring injury burden. The HIGH group consisted of eight teams that had a higher-than-average hamstring injury burden.

Results

Twenty-one risk factors were suggested. The majority were extrinsic in nature, associated with coaching staff, team or club rather than players themselves. ‘Lack of communication between medical staff and coaching staff’ had the highest average importance (weighted average=3.7) followed by ‘Lack of regular exposure to high-speed football during training sessions’ (weighted average=3.6). The HIGH group perceived the player factors fatigue and wellness as more important than the LOW group.

Conclusion

According to CMOs recruited in this study, most risk factors for hamstring injuries are extrinsic and associated with the club and coaching staff, and not the players themselves.

Risks of kidney failure associated with consumption of herbal products containing Mu Tong or Fangchi: a population-based case-control study
Author : Dele Bolade Samson Babalola

BACKGROUND

Taiwan has a remarkably high incidence of end-stage renal disease (ESRD). The objective of this study is to determine the association between prescribed herbal products containing aristolochic acid and ESRD.

STUDY DESIGN

Population-based case-control study.

SETTING & PARTICIPANTS

All new ESRD cases in Taiwan and a simple random sample (200,000 people) drawn from the national health insurance reimbursement database in 1997-2002.

PREDICTOR

Age; sex; hypertension; diabetes; cumulative doses of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, acetaminophen, and adulterated herbal supplements potentially containing aristolochic acid before the development of chronic kidney disease; and indications for prescribing such herbs, including chronic hepatitis, chronic urinary tract infection, chronic neuralgia, or chronic musculoskeletal diseases.

OUTCOMES & MEASUREMENTS

Occurrence of ESRD through construction of multiple logistic regression models.

RESULTS

There were 36,620 new ESRD cases from 1998 through 2002. After exclusion of cases with chronic kidney disease diagnosed before July 1, 1997, there were 25,843 new cases of ESRD and 184,851 controls in the final analysis. Women, older age, hypertension, and diabetes were significantly associated with increased risks of the development of ESRD. After adjustment for known risk factors, cumulative doses >60 g of Mu Tong (OR, 1.47 [95% CI, 1.01-2.14] for 61-100 g; OR, 5.82 [95% CI, 3.89-8.71] for >200 g) or Fangchi (OR, 1.60 [95% CI, 1.20-2.14] for 61-100 g; OR, 1.94 [95% CI, 1.29-2.92] for >200 g) were associated with increased risk of the development of ESRD with a dose-response relationship. This relationship persisted when analyses were limited to participants who consumed <500 pills of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs and those without diabetes.

LIMITATIONS

No measurement of renal function, no contact with patients, over-the-counter sales were not recorded, and potential underestimation of exposure dose for cases and ORs.

CONCLUSIONS

Consumption of >60 g of Mu Tong or Fangchi from herbal supplements was associated with an increased risk of developing kidney failure.

Employees in professional European football: comparison of the personnel structure in sports medicine, sports sciences and physiotherapy between Bundesliga, La Liga, Serie A …

Author : Dele Bolade Samson Babalola


Methods

The study is based on a survey of all 78 teams in the highest football leagues of Germany (Bundesliga), Spain (La Liga), Italy (Serie A) and England (Premier League). The teams were contacted directly and a questionnaire concerning their personnel deployment in the different fields was handed out.

Results

The Bundesliga was found to have a significantly lower total number of employees compared with the other European leagues (6.9 vs. 11.02; p< 0.0001). The number of physicians in the Bundesliga is significantly higher (2.2 vs. 1.76; p= 0.0259), but the number of physicians dedicating more than 80% of their total medical practice to the team was significantly lower in the Bundesliga (0.2 vs. 1.45;< 0.0001). In the group of physiotherapists (1.8 vs. 3.6; p< 0.001), massage therapists (2.1 vs. 2.69; p= 0.0094), sports scientists (0.3 vs. 1.12; p< 0.0001) and athletic and" strength and conditioning" coaches (0.5 vs. 1.83; p< 0.0001), there were also significant differences between the staff structure in the Bundesliga compared with the grouped results of the other leagues.

Conclusion

The personnel structure and the personnel employment in the Bundesliga in sports medicine and sports sciences differs significantly from La Liga, Serie A and the Premier League with the latter three leagues having more personnel and the personnel having closer ties to their teams. Further investigation is necessary to find out if this may be a reason for the differences in injury rates observed between these leagues. A special focus should be placed on country-specific differences in the professions including education and scope of work.

Author : Dele Bolade Samson Babalola

Archives of Public Health 81, 2023

Background

Hepatitis B vaccination is the most important preventive measure against Hepatitis B viral (HBV) infection. Vaccination against HBV infection among healthcare workers is important because of their daily exposure to patients’ body fluids and the possible risk of transmission to other patients. Hence, this study assessed the risk of hepatitis B infection, vaccination status and associated factors among healthcare workers in six geopolitical zones of Nigeria.

Methods

A nationwide cross-sectional study was conducted between January and June 2021 using electronic data capture techniques to enroll 857 healthcare workers (HCWs) in regular contact with patients and their samples through a multi-stage sampling method.

Results

The participants’ mean (SD) age was 38.7 (8.0) years, and 453 (52.9%) were female. Each of the six geopolitical zones in Nigeria had a fair representation, with a range of 15.3 to 17.7% of the study population. The majority (83.8%) of healthcare workers in Nigeria knew that they were at an increased risk of being infected by their work. Also, 72.2% knew that if infected, there was a high risk of liver cancer in later life. Many participants (642 [74.9%]) responded that they consistently applied standard precautions, such as hand washing, gloves, and face masks while attending to patients. Three hundred and sixty (42.0%) participants were fully vaccinated.
Of the 857 respondents, 248 (28.9%) did not receive any dose of the hepatitis B vaccine. Factors that were associated with not being vaccinated included age less than 25 [adjusted odds ratio (AOR) 4.796, 95% CI 1.119 to 20.547, p= 0.035], being a nurse (AOR 2.346, 95% CI 1.446 to 3.808, p= 0.010), being a health attendant (AOR 9.225, 95% CI 4.532 to 18.778, p= 0.010), and being a healthcare worker from the Southeast (AOR 2.152, 95% CI 1.186 to 3.904, p= 0.012) in Nigeria.

Conclusion

This study showed a high level of awareness of the risks associated with hepatitis B infection and suboptimal uptake of the hepatitis B vaccine among healthcare workers in Nigeria.

Author:
Dele Bolade Samson Babalola

Background

The safety of the COVID-19 vaccines has been a topic of concern globally. This issue of safety is associated with vaccine hesitancy due to concerns about the adverse effects of the vaccines. Consequently, this study determined the short-term safety profile of the Oxford/AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine in Ekiti State, Nigeria.

Methods

Descriptive cross-sectional study conducted between May and July 2021 among individuals who had received the first dose of the first batch of the Oxford/AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine at Ekiti State University Teaching Hospital (EKSUTH), Ado-Ekiti, Nigeria. A Google form was used to collect data on the adverse effects of the vaccine.

Results

Out of over 1,000 individuals who were approached, 758 respondents completed the study. A large percentage (57.4%) of those who received the vaccines were healthcare workers. Adverse effects were reported in 70.8% of the participants with most manifesting on the first day of the vaccination. The predominant adverse effects were injection site soreness (28.5%), followed by fatigue (18.7%) and muscle pain (8.6%). There was no report of severe adverse effects such as anaphylactic reactions, thrombosis, myocarditis, transient myelitis, or Guillen-Barre syndrome.

Conclusion

This study found that self-reported adverse effects of the Oxford/AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine were mild and short in duration. This outcome has promising implications for improving COVID-19 vaccine uptake in the immediate environment and Nigeria

By Dele Bolade Samson Babalola.

Description:

Objectives: Heart failure (HF) is an important cause of hospital admission in Nigeria. HF is increasingly prevalent because the population is aging and HF epidemiology is changing. We aimed at profiling the socio-demographic, clinical and echocardiographic (Echo) characteristics of patients admitted for acute HF. This is one of the largest cohorts of HF patients profiled in Nigeria so far.
Methods: Cross sectional design. Socio-demographic, clinical and Echo data were collected from 455 patients admitted for AHF at University of Ilorin Teaching Hospital, North central, Nigeria.
Results: Mean age of patients was 58.9±15.7 years,(men were older than women, P= 0.006). 265 (58.2%) were males, most patients were aged> 60 years, 4.8% had pre-existing Type2 Diabetes mellitus. 53.2% of patients presented in New York Heart Association Stages III and IV. Median duration of admission was 11days (IQR, 6-17), intrahospital mortality-11.6%. Hypertension was the commonest aetiological factor (62.4%), followed by dilated cardiomyopathy 17.6%, rheumatic heart disease (6.6%), Peripartum cardiomyopathy (5.3%), and others.
Conclusion: AHF patients in our study are older than those in previous studies in Nigeria and sub-Saharan Africa. Hypertension is main driver of AHF, and patients largely present with clinically advanced disease necessitating stronger public health education about risk factors and early presentation.

By Dele Bolade Samson Babalola


Despite the availability of a wide range of literature on what can be construed as philanthropic behavior in Africa, there is limited conceptual discussion on what constitutes philanthropy in African context(s). Yet, philanthropic behavior is a culturally rooted phenomenon manifesting in diverse forms, expressions, and models. This review contributes to a growing body of literature on conceptions and manifestations of African philanthropy. The review illustrates a complex plurality of actions that fall under cultures and practices of giving in Africa. These include the giving of money, time, knowledge, influence, and visibility in support of a cause, valuable goods, and body parts/organs from the living and the dead. While some of these actions conform to dominant Western notions of philanthropy, others do not. From an analysis of these practices, this paper proposes that African philanthropy can be conceptually structured on the basis of spheres of philanthropic practice, and the underlying bases and motivations for philanthropy. On spheres of philanthropic practice, at least three forms of philanthropy exist: institutional (formal); non-institutional (non-formal/informal/direct); and a hybrid form that blends practices from the formal and informal spheres. On motivations for giving, the predominant forms are based on mutuality, solidarity, and counter-obligation inherent in collectivist and humanistic African philosophies of life. Further, motivations are drawn from religious obligations, institutional requirements on corporate bodies, and institutional arrangements in the development process. There are, nonetheless, significant overlaps between spheres of practice and motivations in contemporary philanthropic practices in Africa. For instance, philanthropic culture in Africa manifests as religious giving, donations to individuals or institutions, mutual aid, reciprocity, self-help revolving fund organizations, corporate social responsibility activities, and individual/family donations to public benefit organizations. These practices highlight a rich tapestry of spheres of practice and motivations for giving, where the wealthy and the poor are equally involved. The review concentrates (by choice) on the giving of money and time (volunteering, especially informal volunteering) due to a dearth of academic literature on other forms of giving as philanthropy in Africa.