TY - JOUR T1 - Is bowling workload a risk factor for injury to Australian junior cricket fast bowlers? JF - British Journal of Sports Medicine JO - Br J Sports Med SP - 843 LP - 846 DO - 10.1136/bjsm.2005.018515 VL - 39 IS - 11 AU - R J Dennis AU - C F Finch AU - P J Farhart Y1 - 2005/11/01 UR - http://bjsm.bmj.com/content/39/11/843.abstract N2 - Objectives: To examine whether bowling workload is a risk factor for overuse injury to Australian junior cricket fast bowlers and to evaluate the appropriateness of current bowling workload guidelines.Methods: Forty four male fast bowlers (mean (standard deviation) age 14.7 (1.4) years) were monitored prospectively over the 2002–2003 season. Bowlers completed a daily diary to record bowling workloads and self reported injuries, which were validated by a physiotherapist. Bowling workload prior to the first injury (for those bowlers who were injured) was compared to workload across the whole season for uninjured bowlers.Results: Eleven (25%) bowlers reported an overuse-type injury, with seven of these sustaining a back injury. Injured bowlers had been bowling significantly more frequently than uninjured bowlers (median number of days since the previous bowling day: 3.2 v 3.9 days, Mann-Whitney U = 105.0, p = 0.038). Compared with bowlers with an average of ⩾3.5 rest days between bowling, bowlers with an average of <3.5 rest days were at a significantly increased risk of injury (risk ratio (RR) = 3.1, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.1 to 8.9). There were also trends towards an increased risk of injury for those who bowled an average of ⩾2.5 days per week (RR = 2.5, 95% CI 0.9 to 7.4) or ⩾50 deliveries per day (RR = 2.0, 95% CI 0.7 to 5.4).Conclusions: This study has identified high bowling workload as a risk factor for overuse injury to junior fast bowlers. Continued research is required to provide scientific evidence for bowling workload guidelines that are age-specific for junior fast bowlers. ER -