Sport specialization and sport participation opportunities and their association with injury history in female high school volleyball athletes.

Abstract Objective Determine the association of sport specialization in female volleyball athletes with previous injury history and determine the association of sport specialization with volleyball participation opportunities. Design Cross-sectional. Setting Recruitment occurred from 83 Wisconsin high schools during the 2018 volleyball season. Participants Female volleyball athletes (N = 1,588, grades 9–12, age = 15.6 ± 1.1 years). Main outcomes Participants completed a pre-season questionnaire soliciting information regarding 1) demographics, 2) sport specialization, 3) sport participation, and 4) sport-related injuries in the previous 12 months. Univariable logistic regression models were used to identify associations with previous injury. Chi-square analyses were used to investigate associations between sport specialization classification and other sport participation opportunities. Results Both moderately and highly specialized athletes were more likely to report a previous injury compared to low specialized athletes (moderate OR: 1.84 [1.29–2.62]; p  Conclusions Specialization was associated with injury history and year-round volleyball opportunities among female adolescent volleyball athletes.