Summary of an article describing how injury prevention advice influenced knowledge and behaviors in runners.
Who
51 runners from 26 clinics (Canada).
Intervention group
31 runners (females: 21, males: 10)
aged 48.9 (females: 47.7, males: 51.4)
BMI 26.4 (females: 26.4, males: 26.3)
Control group
20 runners (females: 16, males: 4)
aged 48.8 (females: 45.1, males: 63.5)
BMI 27.3 (females: 27.0, males: 28.4)
Design
Randomised controlled trial. Analysis of secondary outcomes.
Intervention group
- online advice on running related injury prevention during weeks 1, 2 and 3 and also during weeks 3, 5, 7, 9 and 11
- 13 weeks data collection
Control group
- online advice on running related injury prevention during weeks 1, 2 and 3 only
- 13 weeks of data collection
Outcome measures
Running related injury prevention knowledge and behaviors.
Main results
- The mean response rate on the last questionnaire was 85% in the intervention group and 90.3% in the control group.
- 94% were either new to running or had a more than a year break from running.
- 87% of runners in the intervention group reported using injury prevention advice. 45% of the control group reported using the advice.
- The difference in correct answers to knowledge questions was 5.52, suggesting a benefit of the intervention.
- Answers related to behaviors did not differ significantly between the groups.
- 91% of runners stated that there were no barriers to performing injury prevention. The barriers found included lack of the second pair of shoes to alternate and lack of time to do injury prevention.
Take home message
For a clinician & coach
Online runing injury prevention advice improved runners knowledge of injury prevention but not their behaviour.
For a parent
Online running injury prevention advice improved runners' knowledge on what to do to prevent injuries.
For an athlete
If you are a runner, you can improve your injury prevention knowledge via online intervention.
Original article
Hollman H, Ezzat A, Esculier JF, Gustafson P, Scott A. Effects of tailored advice on injury prevention knowledge and behaviours in runners: Secondary analysis from a randomised controlled trial. Physical Therapy in Sport. 2019 May 1;37:164-70.
International Standard Randomised Controlled Trial Number Registry (ISRCTN17357362)