Shoulder Injuries to Quarterbacks in the National Football League

BACKGROUND: Quarterbacks are at risk for shoulder injury secondary to both the throwing motion as well as from contact injury. OBJECTIVE: To delineate the incidence and etiology of shoulder injuries to quarterbacks in the National Football League (NFL). METHODS: Using the NFL Injury Surveillance System (NFLISS), all reported injuries to quarterbacks between 1980 and 2001 were identified. RESULTS: A total of 1534 quarterback injuries were identified with a mean of 18.8 and a median of 6.0 days of playing time lost. The majority of these injuries occurred during a game (83.8%). Passing plays were responsible for 77.4% of all quarterback-related injuries. Shoulder injuries were the second most common injury reported (233 or 15.2%), following closely behind head injuries (15.4%). Direct trauma was responsible for 82.3% of the injuries, with acromioclavicular joint sprains being the most common injury overall (40%). Overuse injuries were responsible for 14% of the injuries, the most common being rotator cuff tendinitis (6.1%) followed by biceps tendinitis (3.5%). CONCLUSION: In this review, the vast majority of shoulder injuries in quarterbacks occurred as a result of direct trauma (82.3%), and less than 15% were overuse injuries resulting from the actual throwing motion.