title: Previously identified patellar tendinopathy risk factors differ between elite and sub-elite volleyball players.
abstract: Patellar tendinopathy is the most common knee injury incurred in volleyball, with its prevalence in elite athletes more than three times that of their sub-elite counterparts. The purpose of this study was to determine whether patellar tendinopathy risk factors differed between elite and sub-elite male volleyball players. Nine elite and nine sub-elite male volleyball players performed a lateral stop-jump block movement. Maximum vertical jump, training history, muscle extensibility and strength, three-dimensional landing kinematics (250 Hz), along with lower limb neuromuscular activation patterns (1500 Hz), and patellar tendon loading were collected during each trial. Multivariate analyses of variance (P < 0.05) assessed for between-group differences in risk factors or patellar tendon loading. Significant interaction effects were further evaluated using post-hoc univariate analysis of variance tests. Landing kinematics, neuromuscular activation patterns, patellar tendon loading, and most of the previously identified risk factors did not differ between the elite and sub-elite players. However, elite players participated in a higher training volume and had less quadriceps extensibility than sub-elite players. Therefore, high training volume is likely the primary contributor to the injury discrepancy between elite and sub-elite volleyball players. Interventions designed to reduce landing frequency and improve quadriceps extensibility are recommended to reduce patellar tendinopathy prevalence in volleyball players.
authors.affiliation: Biomechanics Research Laboratory, Faculty of Science, Medicine & Health, University of Wollongong, Wollongong, New South Wales, Australia.|AIS Movement Science, Australian Institute of Sport, Canberra, Australian Capital Territory, Australia.
authors.forename: I
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Janssen
authors.affiliation: Biomechanics Research Laboratory, Faculty of Science, Medicine & Health, University of Wollongong, Wollongong, New South Wales, Australia.
authors.forename: J R
authors.initials: JR
authors.lastname: Steele
authors.affiliation: Biomechanics Research Laboratory, Faculty of Science, Medicine & Health, University of Wollongong, Wollongong, New South Wales, Australia.
authors.forename: B J
authors.initials: BJ
authors.lastname: Munro
authors.affiliation: AIS Movement Science, Australian Institute of Sport, Canberra, Australian Capital Territory, Australia.
authors.forename: N A T
authors.initials: NA
authors.lastname: Brown
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D056352:Athletes; D001696:Biomechanical Phenomena; D004576:Electromyography; D006801:Humans; D007719:Knee Joint / Q000502:physiology*; D035002:Lower Extremity; D008297:Male; D053580:Muscle Strength / Q000502:physiology*; D018482:Muscle, Skeletal / Q000502:physiology; D017847:Patellar Ligament / Q000502:physiology*; D052097:Quadriceps Muscle / Q000502:physiology*; D016059:Range of Motion, Articular / Q000502:physiology; D011999:Recruitment, Neurophysiological / Q000502:physiology; D012307:Risk Factors; D052256:Tendinopathy / Q000453:epidemiology*; D013997:Time Factors; D054798:Volleyball / Q000293:injuries*; D016474:Weight-Bearing / Q000502:physiology; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: Landing; biomechanics; injury prevention; knee; skill