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Primary goal of the research is to determine whether injury/illness occurrence is influenced by the academic, training and competition loads, as well as the overall load (sum of academic/work, training and competition loads) in elite handball athletes To examine whether subjective measures of perceived overall stress correlate with objectively measured levels of stress.
Determine the benefits of certain biomarkers to monitor stress, load and injury/illness occurrence in athletes.
The current structure and organizational initiatives do not meet the needs of athletes as they face different challenges throughout their careers. There is a need for better health surveillance, load monitoring and support services with a focus on injury/illnesses prevention and rehabilitation. The main goal of the research is to determine how specific loads affect the occurrence of injuries and illnesses in elite handball players and how much of the total load an athlete can withstand before an injury/illness occurs. Thus, the study will attempt to identify athletes at risk of injury/illness by monitoring their workload with subjective (perceived stress) and objective (biomarkers, hours of workload) measurements. One of the goals is also to determine the correlation between objective measures of stress (biomarkers) and subjective measures of stress (athlete's stress assessment). The results will not only be important for the medical and sports community for development of new injury prevention and rehabilitation strategies, but also for structuring the correct policy recommendations for athletes' general health. The research will be carried out on approx. 250 elite handball players (the entire 1st men's handball league) during one handball season. In addition to other parameters (monitoring of load, injuries and illnesses), blood samples will be taken from athletes at five time points according to their training cycle.
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| Label | Type | Description | Intervention Names |
|---|---|---|---|
| Handball players | Professional handball players |
|
| Name | Type | Description | Arm Group Labels | Other Names |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| There is no intervention | Other | There is no any intervention |
|
| Measure | Description | Time Frame |
|---|---|---|
| The Oslo Sports Trauma Research Center Questionnaire on Health Problems (OSTRC) | Injury and illness questionnaire | 12 months |
| Load | PHYSICAL, PSYCHOSOCIAL AND DUAL-CAREER loads | 12 months |
| Measure | Description | Time Frame |
|---|---|---|
| Biomarkers | testosterone, cortisol, Immunoglobulin A (IgA) | 12 months |
| Life Events Survey for Collegiate Athletes (LESCA) questionnaire | Life Events Survey for Collegiate Athletes questionnaire |
| Measure | Description | Time Frame |
|---|---|---|
| Body composition | Body composition measurements with bio-impedance | 12 months |
Inclusion Criteria:
Exclusion Criteria:
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The first league handball players
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| Name | Affiliation | Role |
|---|---|---|
| Kristina Drole, MSc | Faculty of Sport, University of Ljubljana | Principal Investigator |
| Facility | Status | City | State | ZIP | Country | Contacts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Faculty of Sport | Ljubljana | Slovenia | 1000 | Slovenia | ||
| Handball Clubs |
| PubMed Identifier | Type | Citation | Retractions |
|---|---|---|---|
| 36863744 | Background | Drole K, Paravlic A, Steffen K, Doupona M. Effects of physical, psychosocial and dual-career loads on injuries and illnesses among elite handball players: protocol of prospective cohort study. BMJ Open. 2023 Mar 2;13(3):e069104. doi: 10.1136/bmjopen-2022-069104. | |
| 40195973 | Derived | Drole K, Busch A, Paravlic A, Doupona M, Steffen K. Prevalence, incidence and burden of health problems across playing positions in elite male handball players: a 45-week prospective cohort study. BMJ Open Sport Exerc Med. 2025 Apr 5;11(2):e002460. doi: 10.1136/bmjsem-2025-002460. eCollection 2025. |
| Label | URL |
|---|---|
| Link to a study protocol | View source |
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Data will be available upon the reasonable request to principal investigator
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| ID | Term |
|---|---|
| D014947 | Wounds and Injuries |
| D002908 | Chronic Disease |
| D009784 | Occupational Diseases |
| D001265 | Athletic Injuries |
| ID | Term |
|---|---|
| D020969 | Disease Attributes |
| D010335 | Pathologic Processes |
| D013568 | Pathological Conditions, Signs and Symptoms |
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Blood samples will be taken to investigate the levels of testosterone, cortisol and IgA hormones during a single competitive season
| 12 months |
| Ljubljana |
| 1000 |
| Slovenia |
| 39539687 | Derived | Drole K, Steffen K, Paravlic A. Slovenian Translation, Cross-Cultural Adaptation, and Content Validation of the Updated Oslo Sports Trauma Research Center Questionnaire on Health Problems (OSTRC-H2). Orthop J Sports Med. 2024 Nov 13;12(11):23259671241287767. doi: 10.1177/23259671241287767. eCollection 2024 Nov. |