Vitamin D receptor gene polymorphisms and musculoskeletal injuries in professional football players

Abstract

The aim of the present study was to investigate the association between vitamin D receptor (VDR) gene polymorphisms and musculoskeletal injury (MI) in elite football players. In total, 54 male professional football players were recruited from an official Italian professional championship team between 2009 and 2013. The cohort was genotyped for the <i>Apa</i>I, <i>Bsm</i>I and <i>Fok</i>I polymorphisms and MI data were collected over four football seasons. No significant differences were identified among the genotypes in the incidence rates or severity of MI (P=0.254). In addition, no significant associations were observed between VDR polymorphisms and MI phenotypes (P=0.460). However, the results of the casewise multiple regression analysis indicated that the <i>Apa</i>I genotypes accounted for 18% of injury severity (P=0.002). Therefore, while the <i>Bsm</i>I and <i>Fok</i>I polymorphisms did not appear to be associated with the severity or incidence of MI, the <i>Apa</i>I genotypes may have influenced the severity of muscle injury in top-level football players.