A study of the pattern of injuries during the Rugby World Cup pre-qualifying tournament held in Nairobi

Abstract

Rugby, like other contact sports, is associated with injuries. We set out to investigate all injuries that led either to a temporary stoppage of the game and/or substitution of a player during the Rugby World Cup pre-qualifying tournament. A total of six matches were played involving the Arabian Gulf, Kenya, Namibia and Zimbabwe. We recorded a total of 47 injuries, giving an injury rate of eight per match. The number of injuries decreased from 38.3% in the first matches to 23.4% in the final ones. The majority of the injuries affected soft tissues, the most serious of them being a concussion. Anatomically, the lower limbs suffered the majority of injuries (46.81%) followed by the head, trunk and upper limbs with 21.29%, 17.03% and 12.78% respectively. Slightly more injuries occurred during the defensive actions (53.19%) than offensive (46.81%) ones. More injuries occurred in thee second half (61.70%) than the first (38.3%). Some of our findings are in agreement with those of earlier studies. However, further investigations are necessary to establish a clear cut pattern of injuries in this sport.