Background: A professional football player sustains 2 injuries per season on average. Lower extremity injuries are the most common injuries among football players. To develop a prevention programs it is essential to recognize risk factors associated with the incidence of injuries. Previous studies focused on intrinsic risk factors of lower extremity. The association between spine abnormities and lower extremity injuries in professional athletes have only been scarcely studied. Objectives: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effects of various spinal form abnormalities on the rate of lower extremity injuries in male professional football players. Methods: This cohort study among Iranian Football players was implemented during the 2015 - 2016 season. All players were assessed for spinal alignment during Pre Participation Examinations. In total, club doctors documented information of 244 players out of 420 players. Results: There were 155 injuries recorded in total with at least one day absence from training or match, of which the most common injuries were hamstring muscle injuries (n = 41, 26%), ankle ligament injuries (n = 34, 22%) and adductor injuries (n = 25, 16%) respectively. Increasing thoracic kyphosis Cobb`s angle was associated with a reduction in the likelihood of exhibiting quadriceps injury, odds ratio (CI 95%): 0.806 (0.671 - 0.968). Conclusions: The reason why players with lower thoracic kyphosis Cobb`s angle may be at risk for quadriceps injury is not clear. But biomechanical changes such as extensibility of hamstring and the balance between hamstring and quadriceps may partially explain the increased risk.
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