Psychosocial factors and running-related injuries: unraveling the connection, based on a one-year prospective study

BACKGROUND: Although runners are healthier than most of the population, they can incur a risk of injury. Literature shows a strong evidence of risk factors for running-related injuries (RRIs) based on characteristics of running. This study aimed to assess differences in psychosocial factors between injured and uninjured recreational runners. METHODS: The study was designed as a 1-year prospective study with 108 participants (age 36.3 +/- 8.4y). The primary outcome was the incidence of RRIs at 1-year follow-up. The primary exposure variables were running-related characteristics and psychosocial factors assessed upon entry into the study. The differences between injured and uninjured runners were assessed using Mann-Whitney U Test, independent samples t-test and the effect size was assessed by Cohen's d. RESULTS: No statistically significant differences were observed between injured and uninjured runners in relation to the psychosocial factors examined. CONCLUSIONS: However, it is noteworthy that we identified medium-sized effects for the amount of sleep (d 0.46) and restless sleep (d0.43), providing a basis for future research with larger sample sizes and more refined measures of sleep patterns to elucidate the potential role of sleep in RRIs.