| Abstract ID |
| 20260135 |
| Category |
| Sports Medicine: Epidemiology and Injury Prevention |
| Preferable Presentation |
| Both |
| Title |
| THIS STUDY DEVELOPS THE HEALTH READINESS SCORE (HRS) TO ADDRESS ATHLETE UNDER-REPORTING. USING A TWO-TIERED TRIAGE APPLICATION, 50 ELITE ATHLETES WERE MONITORED FOR 10 WEEKS. VALIDATED AGAINST MEDICAL RECORDS, THE HRS ACTS AS AN EARLY WARNING SYSTEM TO REDUCE TIME-LOSS INJURIES, ESTABLISHING A NEW STANDARD FOR EVIDENCE-BASED POLICY AND EFFICIENT SPORTS HEALTH MANAGEMENT IN THAILAND. |
| Author |
|
| Presenter |
| Kathanon phonpuet |
| Abstract |
| Background Today, elite athletes face heavy training loads and increasingly dense competition schedules. Evidence suggests that poor load management is a primary risk factor for acute illness and overtraining syndrome. In the high-stakes environment of elite sports, effective injury management is a critical determinant of success for both athletes and national sports organizations (Schwellnus et al., 2016). The transition from reactive care to proactive surveillance is essential for maintaining peak performance. Research by Drew and Finch (2016) confirms a significant relationship between training load and injury risk. Without effective monitoring, minor health issues can escalate into severe "time-loss injuries," negatively impacting athlete longevity and government support budgets. While the OSTRC Questionnaire on Health Problems (Clarsen et al., 2014) is a globally recognized tool for monitoring overuse injuries, its application among Thai national athletes faces a major limitation: "respondent burden." The complex structure, excessive questions, and unclear Thai translations often lead to poor long-term compliance (Saw et al., 2016). Beyond structural design, injury under-reporting remains a significant obstacle. Athletes frequently avoid reporting pain due to concerns regarding their team status or selection opportunities (Mallard et al., 2017). When tools are cumbersome, athletes are more likely to ignore sub-clinical symptoms. This deprives medical teams of the evidence-based data required for accurate load adjustments and clinical decision-making (Fuller et al., 2006). To address these challenges, this research aims to develop and validate the Health Readiness Score (HRS). Built upon the IOC’s Cumulative Load Model (Soligard et al., 2016), the HRS utilizes a concise Two-Tiered Triage structure. This includes a Red Flag Override for critical injuries and an Injury Burden Score (IBS) for continuous monitoring of less severe symptoms (Finch & Cook, 2014). This study seeks to prove the tool’s reliability through discrepancy analysis against clinical medical records, following the injury prevention validation framework established by van Mechelen (1992). The HRS system serves as both a communication bridge between athletes and medical staff (Gabbett, 2016) and a foundation for multi-factorial risk management in Thai sports policy. MethodologyThis study involves 50 elite athletes from the Taekwondo Association of Thailand. A specialized weekly health monitoring application serves as the primary data collection tool. The system employs a normalization technique to convert the Injury Burden Score (IBS) into a 0–100% Health Readiness Score (HRS). Over a 10-week period, self-reported data will be cross-referenced with medical records provided by the team’s medical staff. Data analysis will utilize correlation statistics and discrepancy analysis to identify specific rates of injury under-reporting and validate the tool's effectiveness. Current Status of Research Phase 1: Tool Development (In Progress): Development of the application, the HRS algorithm, and the Two-Tiered Triage system is complete. Content validity testing with sports medicine and science experts is currently underway. Phase 2: Data Collection (Upcoming): Finalizing preparations for field data collection with the athlete cohort. Phase 3: Data Analysis and Conclusion (Upcoming): Scheduled processing of longitudinal data and final reporting. |