Femur, Tibia, and Fibula Fractures Secondary to Youth Soccer: A Descriptive Study and Review of the Literature

Objectives Soccer is the most popular sport in the world and is one of the top sports with increased participation. Despite the vast and increasing numbers of soccer players, limited data are available on pediatric lower extremity injuries. In particular, the purpose of the study is to describe the epidemiology of femur, tibia, and fibula fractures secondary to youth soccer. Methods A retrospective review concerning soccer-related femur, tibia, and fibula fractures was conducted in children under the age of 18 years from January 1, 2000 to December 31, 2015 with statewide data from the Pennsylvania Trauma Systems Foundation (PTSF), Mechanicsburg, PA. Results A total of 258 youth soccer players were admitted for femur, tibia, and fibula fractures from 2000 to 2015. These fractures constituted 33% of soccer-related injuries in youth admitted at trauma centers. Sixty-five percent of the fractures involved the tibia and 34% involved the femur. Body contact injury resulted in 54% of the fractures and non-body contact injury resulted in 46% of the fractures. Athletes the age of 13 and older sustained 67% of the fractures and were more likely to incur contact injuries (p-value=0.000041) than those less than 13. Males sustained 67% of the fractures, and gender was not associated with the mechanism of injury (p-value=0.43). Open fractures included 10% of tibia fractures and did not occur in femur fractures. The growth plate was involved in 24% of the femur fractures and 17% of the tibia fractures. Conclusion Youth soccer has the potential for serious femur, tibia, and fibula fractures. Intervention programs should aim at reducing non-body contact mechanism in children < 13 years of age and body contact mechanism in children ≥ 13 years of age. Further research should investigate injury prevention methods such as potentially reducing body contact mechanism by improving the effectiveness of shin guards.