An Assessment of High School Cheerleading: Injury Distribution, Frequency, and Associated Factors

Bert H. Jacobson, Matt Hubbard, Brady Redus, Sarah Price, Tona Palmer, Robin Purdie, Tom Altena

DOI: 10.2519/jospt.2004.1213

Study Design: Mail survey of cheerleading-related training and injuries.
Objective: To collect and describe injury frequency, distribution, and associated factors related to the activity of cheerleading.
Background: Estimates indicate that more than 1 million participants are involved in cheerleading at various levels; however, little information exists relative to injuries and training. Unlike most other sports, cheerleader injuries are not tracked in a central database.
Methods and Measures: High school cheerleaders (mean age, 16.3 years) in 3 Midwest states completed questionnaires mailed to their respective high schools. Of the surveys mailed to 104 schools, 425 (32.2%) were returned and sufficiently completed for analysis.
Results: Participants reported an average of 4.1 years of experience and 61.9% of the respondents had sustained 1 or more career injuries. During the previous year, 41.3% had sustained 1 or more injuries (mean ± SD, 1.7 ± 1.9), resulting in an average of 3.4 reported missed practice or performance days. Of all injuries, the ankle (24.4%), back (16.1%), and wrist or hand (15.6%) were the most frequent sites of injury.
Conclusion: The rates of injury in cheerleading are comparable to rates of other sports. To accurately provide safety guidelines for all levels of cheerleading, a nationwide injury tracking system is necessary.

J Orthop Sports Phys Ther. 2004; 34(5):261-265.

Key Words: epidemiology, musculoskeletal injuries, sports, survey

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