Incidence Of Injuries And Illnesses Among Team Usa Staff Supporting The 2022 Beijing Winter Paralympic Games

PURPOSE: To characterize the incidence of injuries and illnesses among Team USA staff during the Beijing 2022 Winter Paralympic Games. METHODS: retrospective chart review was performed on all medical encounters within the Team USA staff delegation supporting the 2022 Beijing Winter Paralympic Games. New injuries and illnesses were recorded based on the guidelines outlined by the 2020 International Olympic Committee and classified using the Orchard Sports Injury and Illness Classification System. Details of the athlete (sex), injury (anatomic location) and illness (body system) were examined. Injury proportions (IP) and incidence rates (IR) with 95% confidence intervals per 1000 staff days (SD) were calculated. RESULTS: A total of 120 staff (males, n = 65; females, n = 55), accounting for 2,801 staff days, were included in the analysis. Eight Team USA Paralympic staff (75% male) presented for medical evaluation. Four encounters (IP, 3.3%) were classified as illness with an incidence rate of 1.4 [95% CI; 0.0, 2.8] per 1000 SD. The etiologies of the reported illnesses were categorized as respiratory (0.8%; IR, 0.4 [-0.3, 1.1]), dermatologic (0.8%; IR, 0.4 [-0.3,1.1]), gastrointestinal (0.8%; IR, 0.4 [-0.3, 1.1]), and conditions of the ears, nose, and throat (0.8%; IR, 0.4 [-0.3,1.1]). Five encounters (100% male) were classified as injury (IP, 3.3%) with an incidence rate of 1.8 [0.2, 3.3] per 1,000 SD. The anatomic locations involved the neck (0.8%; IR, 0.7 [-0.3, 1.7]), chest (0.8%; IR, 0.4 [-0.3,1.1]), lumbar spine (0.8%; IR, 0.4 [-0.3,1.1]), and pelvis/buttocks (0.8%; IR, 0.4 [-0.3,1.1]). CONCLUSIONS: Our findings illustrate that the incidence of injuries and illnesses among Team USA staff supporting the 2022 Beijing Winter Paralympic Games remains relatively low, with 6.7% of staff sustaining either an injury or illness during the Games period. Knowledge of injury and illness risks in staff supporting Paralympic athletes allows for appropriate staffing decisions and enables the development and implementation of injury and illness prevention strategies.