ABSTRACT
This chapter provides an introduction to the fundamentals of epidemiologic methods as applied to musculoskeletal and sports medicine. The number of people who participate in sport is large, with 470,000 collegiate athletes, 7.8 million high school athletes,28,29 and an unknown number (undoubtedly in the tens of millions) of adults and children who play in club and recreational leagues. While involvement in organized sports bestows many health benets and rewards, it also carries the risk of injury and other negative effects. Sportsrelated musculoskeletal injuries lead to chronic musculoskeletal problems and osteoarthritis,20,21,34 limiting the ability to experience pain-free mobility or participate in tnessenhancing activities later in life.10
