A comparison of injuries, limited-duty days, and injury risk factors in infantry, artillery, construction engineers, and Special Forces soliders

Abstract

Objectives: We compared injuries/risk factors in infantry soldiers (I), construction engineers (CK), combat artillery (CA), and Special Forces (SF) during their operational and fitness activities. Methods: Anthropometrics, ethnicity, and fitness data were collected before review of medical records. Results: Injury rates for I, CK, and CA were 4.0, 7.2, and 5.5 injuries/100 soldier-months, respectively: over 70% of them resulted from overuse. SF soldiers had an injury rate of 3.5 injuries/100 soldier-months, 50% of them reported as traumatic. Average limited-duty days (LDI)s) were threefold higher in SF. Smoking, BMI ≥25, and APFT run time for 3.2 km > 14 minutes were risk factors in I. Caucasian ethnicity, height <170.2 cm, weight ≥90 kg, and BMI ≥25 were risk factors in CK and CA. Age >27 years old was a risk factor in SF. Conclusions: Greater emphasis should be placed on risk factor identification and testing strategies to reduce injuries among SF and other troops.