Running-Related Injuries Captured Using Wearable Technology during a Cross-Country Season: A Preliminary Study

Abstract

Introduction/Purpose Running-related injuries are prevalent among competitive runners. In a previous prospective descriptive assessment of in situ running biomechanics in collegiate cross-country athletes, a subset of athletes developed repetitive stress lower extremity injuries during study participation. The purpose of this preliminary, observational study was to assess sensor-derived biomechanics in the several days leading up to injury (n = 8; 4 female, 4 male) compared with runners who remained healthy (n = 14; 9 female, 5 male) over a single cross-country season. Methods Wearable sensors were used to collect running biomechanics during two weekly runs, and surveys were used to capture wellness and injury. Individual z scores of biomechanical measures were assessed for runners who developed injuries and compared against healthy male and female z scores. Results Of the eight injuries, four were categorized as bone stress injuries (three female, one male), and four as soft tissue injuries (one female, three male). Bone injury cases had increased contact time, loading, and pronation, and decreased cadence and stride length preceding injury. Hamstring injury cases (n = 2) had increased stride length, whereas foot and ankle soft tissue injuries had increased pronation velocity and decreased shock and braking. Conclusions This assessment of injury cases illuminates several biomechanical patterns associated with running-related injury development. This study sets the precedent for larger-scale prospective running-related injury evaluations.