A new systematic review and meta-analysis finds the overall rate of anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injuries among high school athletes is significantly higher among females than males - and soccer is the most injury-causing for women.  

Researchers at the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia found significant risk of
anterior cruciate ligament
 injury among both genders, but though the majority of ACL injuries occur in boys, the rate of injury per exposure is higher in girls.

Specifically, in girls, the highest
anterior cruciate ligament
 injury risks per season were observed in soccer (1.1 percent), basketball (0.9 percent), and lacrosse (0.5 percent). Among young males, the highest risks per season for boys were observed in football (0.8 percent), lacrosse (0.4 percent), and soccer (0.3 percent).

Knowledge of such sport-specific, seasonal risk is essential for evidenced-based parent-athlete decision-making, accurate physician counseling, and targeted injury-reduction programs for the most at-risk sports, said said lead author Alex L. Gornitzky, a fourth-year medical student at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania. "As participation rates in high school athletics continues to rise significantly, it has become increasingly important to establish up-to-date, individualized injury information for high school athletes and their families, who represent a large proportion of patients visiting pediatric orthopaedic and sports medicine clinics."

Presentation: "Sport-Specific Yearly Risk and Incidence of Anterior Cruciate Ligament Tears in High School Athletes: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis" was on Saturday, October 24, 2015 at the 2015 American Academy of Pediatrics Conference&Exhibition in Washington, DC.