Characterization of health and safety resources for athletes with sickle cell trait at NCAA institutions

The purpose of this study was to report the prevalence of student-athletes with sickle cell trait (SCT), determine which screening practices are most commonly used, describe the health and human performance services provided to athletes, and ascertain if differences between National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) designations or divisions exist. A cross-sectional survey design was used to query healthcare administrators regarding SCT resources at their institution. The independent variables were designation (historically Black colleges or universities [HBCUs] or non-HBCU) and Division (DI, DII, and DIII). The dependent variables were SCT prevalence, and the health and human performance services provided to athletes. Of the 60 respondents, HBCU (n = 16) reported 4.9 ± 2.7% of athletes with SCT, which was higher than non-HBCU (1.1 ± 0.8%; p = 0.022). Historically Black colleges or university reported a higher percentage of student-athletes supplying their own screening results than non-HBCU (52.5 ± 39.2 vs. 12.9 ± 24.0%; p = 0.022). Division III reported higher proportions of waivers than DI (68.3 ± 38.4 vs. 16.9 ± 31.0%; p = 0.010). Most schools (n = 42, 70.0%) reported having policy and procedures regarding exertional sickling, but none (n = 60, 100.0%) involved strength and conditioning coaches (SCCs) during development. Practically, a greater proportion of DII and DIII institutions do not have supplemental oxygen available compared with DI but not statistically (p = 0.058). Pragmatically, the prevalence should be considered when ordering and preparing resources annually. NCAA institutions need to create policy and procedure sections beyond screening. Athletic trainers and SCCs need to have a strong collaborative relationship to optimize health and human performance services.
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Bibliographic Details
Subjects:
Notations:biological and medical sciences management and organisation of sport
Tagging:Anämie Hämoglobin
Published in:The Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research
Language:English
Published: 2024
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1519/JSC.0000000000004899
Volume:38
Issue:11
Pages:1967-1773
Document types:article
Level:advanced