Injury prevention conference

Recently, I had the great fortune of attending the morning session for the injury prevention conference. This was hosted by the Department for Health at the University of Bath. This involved three great talks about how we can make a difference, by applying scientific research to help prevent the occurrence of injuries and the health risks associated with them.

The first talk focused on the role of bio mechanics in running. Dr. Sharon Dixon explained that bio mechanics, things such as joint angles and force of impact, may lead to common running injuries (although many other factors also play a role). Research in this area mainly focuses on measuring foot force, pressure and joint angles following an injury, to see if a retrospective cause can be identified. However, it can be difficult to infer direct causality from these results. Dixon had begun some research, which accidentally ended up in an acquired injury, allowing a unique case study on the bio mechanics of injury. These results showed a distinct change in running movement pattern, which happened even before the athlete reported any problems. This could have interesting applications in terms of elite athletes. I posed the question of how this may apply to preventing injury in recreational runners. Dixon mentioned the equipment becoming more readily accessible in running shops, but suggested the idea of some kind of monitoring mobile app may be an interesting way forward.

The second set of talks focused on psychological stress and injury. Dr. Stephen Mellalieu discussed the psychosocial factors involved in responses to injury and coping in rehabilitation. Professional athletes encounter a lot of unavoidable stress regarding their performance, but also may be dealing with personal stress in their home environment (for example, having a baby). Mellalieu highlighted the three levels of intervention for injury prevention: primary, secondary and tertiary. 

Finally, Dr Carly McKay spoke about how we can change behaviour to modify risk. Effective interventions may exist but if people are not using them, then they have limited applications. When introducing interventions it is important to consider, not only the individual level behaviour of the athlete, but also the behaviour of teams, coaches and spectators. Unfortunately, as we know in the area of health, increasing awareness of an intervention doesn't always lead to changes in behaviour. McKay used the HAPA model to highlight the importance of motivation, self-efficacy and barriers to implementing an intervention. 

Overall, all these talks were fascinating and, although I had an awareness of the psychological side of prevention, I learnt a lot about the biomechanical side of injuries too. 

Thanks to the Department of Health for hosting this event.