Summary

This study offers a characterization of foot and ankle injuries in the NBA athlete with 33% of players sustaining a structural ankle injury at a rate of 5.05 injuries/1000 games overall being reported over this 5-year period.

Abstract

Background

Injuries to the foot and ankle are more common in National Basketball Association (NBA) basketball compared to other professional sports. The goal of this study is to report the incidence and associated risk factors of foot and ankle injuries in the NBA athletes.

Methods

Foot and ankle injury data from the 2015-16 through 2020-21 NBA seasons was queried and verified using a publicly available database. The truncated 2019-20 season was omitted from this study due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The primary outcome was the incidence of foot and ankle injuries, reported per 1000 game exposures (GEs). Secondary analysis was performed to identify risk factors for ankle injuries through bivariate analysis and multivariable logistic regression of player demographics, performance statistics, injury characteristics, and previous lower extremity injuries. Additionally, factors influencing the length of absence were assessed via negative binomial regression.

Results

There were 728 structural foot and ankle injuries (5.34 per 1000 GEs) sustained by NBA players over 5 NBA seasons, with sprain/strain as the most common injury type (4.27 per 1000 GEs). The majority of ankle injury events (55%) resulted in 2-10 game absences. The likelihood of sustaining an ankle injury was significantly associated with a greater number of games played, previous upper leg injury, and more games missed due to injury. Increased length of absence due to ankle injury was significantly associated with greater height, minutes per game, usage rate, points per game, total rebounds per game, and a prior history of foot, ankle, and knee injuries.

Conclusion

The incidence of foot and ankle injuries was 5.34 per 1000 GEs in professional basketball players. Games played and previous history of upper leg injuries were found to be risk factors for ankle injuries. Factors associated with physiologic burden such as minutes per game and usage rate were associated with an increased severity of injury.