The Association Between Fitness Test Scores and Musculoskeletal Injury in Police Officers

Liana Lentz, Jason R. Randall, Christine A. Guptill, Douglas P. Gross, Ambikaipakan Senthilselvan and Donald Voaklander
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Liana Lentz: School of Public Health, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB T6G 1C9 Canada
Jason R. Randall: School of Public Health, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB T6G 1C9 Canada
Christine A. Guptill: Faculty of Rehabilitation Medicine, Department of Occupational Therapy, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB T6G 2G4, Canada
Douglas P. Gross: Faculty of Rehabilitation Medicine, Department of Physical Therapy, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB T6G 2G4, Canada
Ambikaipakan Senthilselvan: School of Public Health, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB T6G 1C9 Canada
Donald Voaklander: School of Public Health, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB T6G 1C9 Canada

IJERPH, 2019, vol. 16, issue 23, 1-12

Abstract: A police officer’s career is hazardous and physically demanding. In order to perform occupational tasks effectively and without injury, officers require adequate physical abilities. The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between scores on several fitness tests and musculoskeletal injury in a group of municipal police officers. This retrospective study used existing data to examine the relationship between risk of injury and fitness test performance. Injured and uninjured police officers scored significantly differently on several fitness measures. A multivariate regression indicated that a combination of age, sex, number of pull ups completed and maximal oxygen consumption (VO 2max ) best explained injury risk. Additionally, the findings indicated an interaction between sex and VO 2max , and so the effect of VO 2max on injury risk cannot be understood without accounting for sex.

Keywords: work; physical fitness; exercise test; risk factors; musculoskeletal diseases (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2019
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

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