{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,7,24]],"date-time":"2026-07-24T04:39:30Z","timestamp":1784867970223,"version":"3.55.0"},"reference-count":30,"publisher":"BMJ","issue":"4","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2025,10,9]],"date-time":"2025-10-09T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1759968000000},"content-version":"unspecified","delay-in-days":8,"URL":"http:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-nc\/4.0\/"}],"funder":[{"name":"World Rugby","award":["G-2204-03970"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["G-2204-03970"]}]}],"content-domain":{"domain":["bmj.com"],"crossmark-restriction":true},"short-container-title":["BMJ Open Sport Exerc Med"],"accepted":{"date-parts":[[2025,9,5]]},"published-print":{"date-parts":[[2025,10]]},"abstract":"<jats:sec>\n                  <jats:title>Objectives<\/jats:title>\n                  <jats:p>Contact breast injury (CBI) and exercise-induced breast pain (EIBP) are common in adult female contact sports; however, incidence in adolescent players is unknown. The present study investigated the occurrence, mechanism and reporting behaviours of CBI and EIBP in under-18 international female rugby union.<\/jats:p>\n               <\/jats:sec>\n               <jats:sec>\n                  <jats:title>Methods<\/jats:title>\n                  <jats:p>A cross-sectional survey was distributed to players (n=110, 17.0\u00b10.7 years) participating in the Women\u2019s U18 Six Nations.<\/jats:p>\n               <\/jats:sec>\n               <jats:sec>\n                  <jats:title>Results<\/jats:title>\n                  <jats:p>Incidence of CBI and EIBP was 39% and 43%, respectively. Seventy-seven percent of players affected by CBI had experienced multiple incidents in the previous year. Activities associated with the highest severity of EIBP were running, jumping and tackling, with 27% reporting that breast pain inhibited their performance. Concerningly, 64% of players did not report CBI, and no injuries were reported to coaching\/medical personnel. Notably, over half of players did not consciously adopt strategies to prevent CBI, which may be attributed to various bio-psycho-social mechanisms.<\/jats:p>\n               <\/jats:sec>\n               <jats:sec>\n                  <jats:title>Conclusion<\/jats:title>\n                  <jats:p>While there is a worryingly high incidence of CBI and EIBP in adolescent female international rugby players, reporting remains low, and there is a lack of uptake of support\/protective strategies. Further research is warranted to investigate the effectiveness of female-specific protective equipment and educational programmes, aiming to improve breast health.<\/jats:p>\n               <\/jats:sec>","DOI":"10.1136\/bmjsem-2025-002736","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2025,10,9]],"date-time":"2025-10-09T12:05:18Z","timestamp":1760011518000},"page":"e002736","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1136\/crossmarkpolicy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":2,"title":["\u2018Don\u2019t tell the coach\u2019: contact breast injury and breast pain in under-18 international female rugby players"],"prefix":"10.1136","volume":"11","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0009-0008-4018-287X","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Eloise Elizabeth","family":"Kirby","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Rugby Knowledge Exchange, School of Psychology and Sport Science, Bangor University, Bangor, UK"},{"name":"Institute for Applied Human Physiology, School of Psychology and Sport Science, Bangor University, Bangor, UK"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-9438-963X","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Melissa Elizabeth Annie","family":"Jones","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Rugby Knowledge Exchange, School of Psychology and Sport Science, Bangor University, Bangor, UK"},{"name":"Institute for Applied Human Physiology, School of Psychology and Sport Science, Bangor University, Bangor, UK"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0009-0002-0299-1357","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Seren Lois","family":"Evans","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Rugby Knowledge Exchange, School of Psychology and Sport Science, Bangor University, Bangor, UK"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-0158-9721","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Vicky M","family":"Gottwald","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Rugby Knowledge Exchange, School of Psychology and Sport Science, Bangor University, Bangor, UK"},{"name":"Institute for Psychology of Elite Performance, School of Psychology and Sport Science, Bangor University, Bangor, UK"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-9609-8422","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Julian Andrew","family":"Owen","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Rugby Knowledge Exchange, School of Psychology and Sport Science, Bangor University, Bangor, UK"},{"name":"Institute for Applied Human Physiology, School of Psychology and Sport Science, Bangor University, Bangor, UK"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"239","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2025,10,9]]},"reference":[{"key":"2025100905050888000_11.4.e002736.1","unstructured":"World Rugby . 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