Patterns and management of severe muscle, tendon, and cartilage injuries in elite badminton players: A discipline-based analysis of singles and doubles

Dou, Xiangxiang1; Lee, Dongsoo2; Song, Munku 3

Published Jul 31, 2026 on Dryad. https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.5mkkwh7mq

Data files

Jul 31, 2026 version files 35.73 KB

README.md

16.94 KB
ver_4._Dataset_2_Severe_Injury_Cases_N140.sav

18.80 KB

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to investigate the characteristics of severe muscle, tendon, and cartilage injuries and post-injury management practices among elite adult badminton players according to singles and doubles disciplines. A total of 126 athletes participated in this study. Severe injuries were defined as those resulting in more than 28 days of time loss. Descriptive statistics and chi-square tests were used to analyze injury characteristics and management variables, and effect sizes were calculated using Cramér’s V. Approximately 58 % of athletes reported experiencing at least one severe injury during their careers. Severe injuries were primarily associated with overuse mechanisms and predominantly affected the lower extremities, with the knee being the most commonly affected anatomical region. Although overall injury patterns were similar between disciplines, doubles players showed a higher proportion of non-dominant side injuries (p = 0.028), whereas groin, foot, and abdominal injuries were only observed in singles players. The rate of medical clearance prior to return to play was low (33.3 %), while the reinjury rate was relatively high (52.9 %). Significant differences were observed in psychological concerns between disciplines (p = 0.015). These findings indicate that severe overuse injuries are common among elite badminton players, with similar overall injury patterns but discipline-specific differences in injury characteristics and psychological responses.

Dataset DOI: 10.5061/dryad.5mkkwh7mq

Description of the data and file structure

This dataset was collected for a retrospective survey study examining patterns and management of severe muscle, tendon, and cartilage injuries among elite badminton players according to their primary playing discipline. A total of 126 elite adult badminton players aged 1924 years, including 64 singles players and 62 doubles players, completed the survey. The dataset contains demographic and athletic characteristics, severe injury history, injury location and mechanism, return-to-play duration, post-injury management, psychological concerns, and reinjury information. Severe injuries were defined as muscle, tendon, or cartilage injuries resulting in more than 28 days of absence from training or competition. The data were used to compare injury characteristics and post-injury management between singles and doubles players.

Files and variables

File: ver_4._Dataset_2_Severe_Injury_Cases_N140.sav

Variables within 'ver_4._Dataset_2_Severe_Injury_Cases_N140.sav'

Note: some variables were removed and several were coded or modified to minimize the possibility of participant identification from the data.

Variable Name	Description	Coding
Height_cm	Height (cm)	Grouped into 5-unit intervals
Weight_kg	Body weight (kg)	Grouped into 5-unit intervals
Sex	Sex	a, b
Discipline	Primary playing discipline	1=Singles; 2=Doubles
Dominant_hand	Dominant hand	a, b
Age	Age (years)
Athletic_career_years	Athletic career duration (years)	Grouped into 5-unit intervals
National_team_experience	National team experience	a, b
Injury_tissue_type	Type of injured tissue	1=Muscle; 2=Tendon; 3=Cartilage
Severe_injury_experience	History of severe injury	1=Yes; 2=No
Injury_timing	Timing of severe injury occurrence	a, b, c, d, e, f, g, h, i, j, k, l, m, n, o
Injury_timing_group	Grouped injury timing	1=Pre-collegiate; 2=Collegiate/Professional
Injured_side	Side of the injured body part	1=Right; 2=Left
Injury_dominant	Injury occurrence relative to dominant side	1=Dominant; 2=Non-dominant
Injury_diagnosis	Specific injury diagnosis
Injury_diagnosis_group	Grouped injury diagnosis	1=Talar OCD; 2=Shoulder Labral Injury; 3=Adductor Tear; 4=Femoral OCD; 5=Meniscal Tear; 6=Plantar Fasciitis; 7=Blank; 8=Oblique Muscle Tear; 9=Patellar Tendinopathy; 10=Achilles Tendinopathy; 11=Achilles Tendon Rupture; 12=Lateral Epicondylitis; 13=Calf Muscle Tear; 14=Hamstring Strain; 15=Rotator Cuff Injury; 99=Other
Injury_top5	Five most common injury diagnoses	1=Patellar Tendinopathy; 2=Calf Muscle Tear; 3=Achilles Tendinopathy; 4=Hamstring Strain; 5=Rotator Cuff Injury; 6=Other
Specific_anatomical_region	Specific anatomical location of injury	1=Knee; 2=Lower Leg; 3=Hamstring; 4=Groin; 5=Quadriceps; 6=Ankle; 7=Foot; 8=Shoulder; 9=Wrist/Elbow; 10=Abdomen
Specific_anatomical_region_group	Grouped specific anatomical location
Anatomical_region	Major anatomical region	1=Lower Limb; 2=Upper Limb; 3=Trunk
Injury_event_specific	Specific activity during which the injury occurred	a, b, c, d, e
Injury_event_type	General activity category during injury occurrence	1=Training; 2=Competition
Injury_movement	Specific movement causing injury	1=Lunge; 2=Jump/Landing; 3=Push-off/Step; 4=Smash/Stroke; 5=Other
Injury_mechanism	Injury mechanism	1=Traumatic (Player Collision); 2=Overuse (Chronic Onset)
Surgery	Surgical treatment	1=Yes; 2=No
Surgery_type	Type of surgery performed
Rehabilitation	Participation in professional rehabilitation	1=Yes; 2=No
Rtp_time	Time required to return to team training after injury
Medical_clearance	Medical clearance before return to play	1=Yes; 2=No
Reinjury	Reinjury of the same body region after return to play	1=Yes; 2=No
Psychological_concern	Primary psychological concern following injury	1=Reinjury; 2=Performance Decline; 3=Competition for Starting Position; 4=Failed Rehabilitation; 5=Salary Reduction; 6=None; 7=Other
Rtpg	Grouped RTP duration (not used in statistical analysis)	1=≤1 month; 2=>1 to ≤2 months; 3=≥3 months

Code/software

The dataset can be viewed using freely available spreadsheet software, such as LibreOffice Calc. Statistical analyses were performed using IBM SPSS Statistics version 25.0 (IBM Corp., Armonk, NY, USA). Continuous variables were summarized as means and standard deviations, and categorical variables as frequencies and percentages. Independent-samples t-tests were used to compare the general characteristics of singles and doubles players. Chi-square tests were used to compare severe injury characteristics and post-injury management variables between the two disciplines. Cramrs V was calculated as the effect size for categorical comparisons. Return-to-play duration was analyzed as a categorical variable because of its non-normal and right-skewed distribution. Statistical significance was set at < 0.05. No custom code, scripts, or additional software packages are included or required to access the dataset.

Access information

The data were collected directly from participants through a retrospective survey conducted by the researchers. The dataset was not derived from any external or publicly available data source and is not available at any other public location.