A retrospective analysis of injury risk in physical education teacher education students between 2000‐2014

To identify primary target groups for injury prevention in physical education teacher education (PETE) students, risk differences between subgroups by sex and curriculum years were compared in a retrospective cohort study (2000‐2014). Injuries recorded by healthcare professionals at the medical facility of a Dutch PETE college were used to calculate overall, intra‐ and extracurricular injury prevalence per sex, curriculum years, and semesters and to compare these by logistic regression analyses. Of 1083 PETE students, 599 (55.3%) reported at least one injury during their curriculum (60.0% intracurricular). Female students had a higher risk for overall (OR 2.29, 95%CI 1.77‐2.96) and for intracurricular injuries (OR 3.12, 95%CI 2.41‐4.03), but not for extracurricular injuries. Compared to the freshman year, injury risk dropped during the consecutive years (OR 0.56, 95%CI 0.46‐0.67; OR 0.33, 95%CI 0.27‐0.41; OR 0.04, 95%CI 0.03‐0.07, respectively). The first semesters of the freshman and second year showed higher injury prevalence compared to two out of three consecutive semesters (P < .006). Primary target groups for injury preventive measures are freshman and female PETE students. Factors contributing to the predominantly higher intracurricular injury risks, most notably in female students, need to be investigated in prospective cohort studies, regardless of sex.