Assessing prevalence of knee injuries among athletes

Background: The knee joint is the largest joint in the body. It contributes to a large part of the skeletal function of supporting movement, bearing body weight and performing basic movements with muscular and neural control. Complex injuries of the knee joint are common and result from accidents or sports injuries in various fields. This study aims to direct interest in sports medicine towards this type of injury, which is considered an important matter in reducing the burden of injuries on the sports community, as the target group represents athletes of ages ranging between 15 and 40 years. Methods This cross-sectional study was conducted in April 2022 using a sample-appropriate sampling pattern. A self-administered, self-filled questionnaire in Arabic was distributed to the participants, after obtaining ethical approval from the Institutional Review Board (IRB), College of Medicine. Syrian Private University. Results Out of 903 participants, 58% were male and 42% were female. Their mean age was 27.23 years (± 9.1). The prevalence of one-time knee injuries was 25% among the participants. More than half of them exercise between 2 and 5 hours a week. Participants who participated more in sports, especially competitive ones, were associated with a higher rate of knee injuries. Knee pain was the most common complaint. Of those who sought medical attention, most were treated conservatively with analgesia, physiotherapy, and knee braces. Conclusions Knee injuries are common in our community. Football was the dominant sport associated with knee injuries, and most of these injuries were treated conservatively. Stretching and warming up did not help reduce the incidence of injuries. We need to increase awareness and knowledge about these injuries. A comprehensive research must be conducted on prevention methods and factors and studied in order to know and apply effective measures in reducing the rate of these injuries and their complications. In addition, more research is needed to estimate the prevalence of these injuries among females in our population and whether they have different patterns of injuries compared to males.