573 - Exercise-related injuries among unsupervised, untrained individuals in a 10 year period from 2013-2022

Objectives:
20- to 60-year-olds make up the majority of the workforce. Identifying risk factors and mechanisms of injury may be helpful in determining the timeline for a safe return to work.

Design: 25,941 exercise related injuries in the NEISS (National Electronic Injury Surveillance System) database over a 10-year-period between January 2013 and December 2022 were analyzed. Data was filleted to include injuries sustained during exercise without equipment among 20-60 years of age. Key words "team, athlete, player, coach, and professional" were excluded from the search.

Results:
Most of the exercise-related injuries were noted in the Caucasian race (44.90%) and 20-29 (35.01%) and 30-39 (27.20%) age groups. Mean age was 35.56 years of age. Most common injuries were strains and sprains (59.20%) followed by fractures (12.54%), contusions (7.85%), and abrasions (5.11%). Predominant injuries were in the ankle (18.56%), lower trunk (16.52%), and knee (13.47%). The most common activity causing exercise-related injury was running and jogging (35.97%) followed by hiking (16.30%). Most injuries were sustained playing in a sports location (35.88%) followed by public areas (12.21%). Outcomes were positive for these patients, as 95% of them were discharged home from ED and were not admitted to the hospital.

Conclusions:
Untrained athletes who enjoy running and hiking are at greater risk of ankle and knee strains and sprains than their counterparts who prefer gym classes and yoga. This could likely occur because of poor running form, improper biomechanics, or inadequate dynamic warm up and cool down periods. The second most common injury in this population was fracture, which might occur due to slipping on uneven roads or trails. Proper surveillance of the terrain during exercise and minimizing distractions could lower such risks.