Online exercise-based sports injury risk reduction programs—a systematic review protocol

Background: Physical activity and sports participation are beneficial for health but also pose an injury risk. Research efforts in sports injury risk reduction are offering more and more solutions; however, implementation seems to be lagging behind. Research results are mainly disseminated through professional journals, which may restrict their accessibility. Therefore, Internet-based resources may be a useful complement, but their availability, content and quality are not yet known. Objectives: To assess the availability, content and quality of sports injury risk reduction exercise-based programs in an online environment. Method: Google, Yahoo and Bing search engines will be used. Two researchers will independently review the retrieved websites for eligibility through an initial and an in-depth screening. Inactive pages or duplicate pages will be excluded. For each retrieved program data on website and program characteristics will be extracted. The JAMA benchmark criteria and HONcode certification will be used to judge the quality of the websites, and the quality of the exercise programs will be assessed via modified CERT. Discussion: In light of implementation delays in sports injury risk reduction practices, there is a need to broaden dissemination strategies to include media such as the Internet. At the same time, there is also a need to assess the quality and content of online-based resources to guide their potential use. The outcomes of this review will inform clinicians, coaches and others of the current availability and content of injury risk reduction exercise-based programs on the Internet.